Best Wishes
by Annie from Quotev
Summary: Fifteen-year-old Alice Ketchum has decided to travel the Unova region with her Pikachu at her side. She plans on making friends, rivals, and winning Gym badges. But what she didn't plan on was falling in love with one of her traveling partners.
1. In The Shadow of Zekrom!

In The Shadow of Zekrom!

Chapter 1

In the Shadow of Zekrom

The sunlight shines through the window and into my room, where I get dressed. I choose a black tank top and a ruffled jeans skirt. I put on my blue jacket and zip it up. I slip on my black boots and suddenly feel a weight jump on my shoulder.

I see my best buddy for five years on my shoulder—Pikachu. He smiles.

"Pika pi!"

I open the door of my room and run out, running back into my room. "Oops." Forgot my hat.

I slap it on my head and smile at Pikachu. "You ready, Pikachu?" I ask my buddy.

"Pika pi," he says determinedly.

"Taking a trip with Mom," I say. "Can't remember the last time we've done that."

My door suddenly opens, revealing Mom. "Alice? Professor Oak is here to pick us up." She slightly frowns and adjusts the hat on my head. "There! You're all set!"

* * *

Mom and I wait and see Professor Oak pull up in his truck, him wearing summer clothes. I hold back a giggle.

"Let's hit the road!" Wow. Professor Oak seems excited.

"Why are you dressed like that?" I ask.

"What, this?" Oak asks. "To get everyone in the vacationing mood! It's been years since I've visited the Unova region!"

"This is work-related, right Professor?" Mom asks.

"Yes," he answers. "When I'm in between conferences, it's my time. So, here we go!"

"You heard what he said, right, Pikachu?" I ask.

"Pika pi!" he cheers.

We pack into the truck, and he starts it up. We drive towards the airport, and get into the plane. I sit with Pikachu in one seat, and the plane starts.

I stare out the window, the Unova catalog in my hand. Pikachu gasps.

"I can't wait!" I say excitedly.

"Pi pika," Pikachu adds.

Our communication lines are only so we can understand. So, I piece together what he says.

Pi=me

Pika=neither

"The Unova region," I read out of the book. "I bet there are all sorts of Pokémon I've never seen before!"

"Of course!" Professor Oak says. "It's filled with Pokémon. Pokémon you won't find in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn or Sinnoh!"

My heart races. New species of Pokémon! Awesome!

"Wow!" I say. "That's awesome! I can't wait! Man, I hope we get there soon!" I look out the window. "Wow! Unova!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu says.

The clouds uncover the sky and I see land. Beautiful green land. I gasp.

"That's the Unova region," Professor Oak tells us. I smile.

I get off the plane when it lands. "We're here, guys!"

"Pika!" Pikachu yells.

As I start following Mom and Professor Oak, I stop when Pikachu stops.

"Pika?" he asks. He stares off into the ocean.

I turn fully towards my buddy. "Hey, Pikachu!"

Pikachu steps closer to the ocean and looks around. "Pika?"

I stare off, too, and see a huge, swirling black and gray cloud. I gasp.

I run over to him. "Pikachu! What's up? Huh?" Suddenly, a pink creature jumps out and back into the water. I gasp. "Never seen that before!" Pikachu and I run closer, and stare into the water. "That was cool! Wonder if there are more!"

Pikachu doesn't seem to notice. Instead, his attention is fixed on the cloud, which seems to be coming closer.

"What's that?" I ask.

Suddenly, a metal claw cages Pikachu. I gasp and lunge. "Pikachu!"

"Pika!" he screams.

I try to pull him back, but chuckles interrupt me. We look up. Two—or three—people are looking down at us.

"Hey! Who are you guys?" I ask.

"'Who are you,' the question indeed," the girl says.

"We'll answer you, as we feel the need!" the boy says.

The overcoats come off, to reveal Jessie, James and Meowth.

"Team Rocket!" I yell. Where did they come from?! How'd they find us? "What are you doing here?"

"I'll ask you the same question!" James says.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" I yell.

Pikachu releases a bolt of electricity towards the thugs, but they block it with some kind of protector, sending it off in different directions like a Discharge attack.

"Waste of effort!" James shouts.

"We're completely Thunderbolt proof!" Jessie adds.

Suddenly, the cloud moves right above us, and I gasp. It releases a powerful bolt, shocking us and breaking the cage. Pikachu flies out of the bars, and we tumble onto the ground.

I slowly get up to find my buddy on the ground, sparking. "Pikachu?" He gets up and stares at the sky.

"...Pika...chu!" He releases a huge Thunderbolt into the cloud and glares.

In the cloud, I see a black shape, staring at me with red eyes. I hold its gaze. "A Pokémon?" I whisper. It floats away, leaving Pikachu sparking. "Pikachu!" I yelp. I run to him and gather my baby into my arms. "Pikachu, you okay?"

He opens his small eyes and smiles weakly. "Pikachu."

I smile and chuckle. "Pikachu!"

"Pika~" he coos. I hug him tightly.

"Alice!" Mom cries. She and Professor Oak run towards us. "Are you okay?"

I nod. "Yeah."

"But Alice, are you completely sure?" Oak asks.

"Yup," I say. "Aren't we, Pikachu?" My friend has perched on my shoulder, grinning.

"Pika!" Suddenly, Pikachu's cheeks spark, leaving him confused. He shakes it off and jumps into my head. I giggle.

Mom looks at the sky. "I'll tell you, that was some thunderstorm."

"It sure was," Professor Oak agrees.

I look back to where the cloud was, but it's gone. "Who was that?"

"Who, Alice?" Oak asks me.

"I'm sure I saw the shadow of a Pokémon in that cloud," I explain.

Oak frowns. "From our vantage point, all we could see was the cloud."

"Right," Mom adds.

I shake my head. "Man, that's weird. What could it have been?"

A new voice joins the conversation, and I don't recognize it. "Oh, Professor Oak!" I turn to see a young woman in a lab coat smiling at us.

"What do you know?" Oak says. "Professor Juniper!"

She smiles apologetically. "I'm sorry I was so late. How are you getting on after that huge thunderstorm?"

"We're just fine, Professor," Oak assures her. "Thank you." He turns to us. "I'd like you to meet Professor Juniper, and don't let the youthness of one of the most important Unova researchers fool you!"

"Pleasure to meet you!" she says.

* * *

We drive in her car along a few roads. Pokémon crowd the forests, and I don't pay much attention in the car. I'm too busy watching the Pokémon.

We come to this huge building, Professor Juniper's lab. We head to a room and I set Pikachu down on the examination table. At once, multiple wires are hooked to him, and Professor Juniper examines him through a screen.

"Pikachu!" my baby pouts, unhappy about the wires.

"What do you think, Professor?" Oak asks her.

She answers, confusion in her tone. "According to Alice, Pikachu was completely enveloped inside a powerful electric field. Still, I see no evidence of any problem."

I smile. "Then Pikachu must be fine! That's awesome!" I turn to a sad Pikachu. "You're okay, buddy."

He jumps up, smiling. "Pika?"

Juniper smiles. "Please stay a little longer, Pikachu. I'd like to run a few more tests."

"Just a little longer, 'kay?" I whisper to him.

"Pika..." He sits back down.

One of the professor's helpers comes into the room. "Professor Juniper! There's a new Trainer who's about to start his journey."

Juniper blinks. "It's really that time again?!"

My eyes widen. "New Trainer?! Cool!"

Oak turns to me. "You see, Alice, one of Professor Juniper's numerous duties is to give all new Trainers from the Unova region their starter Pokémon."

I can barely keep the excitement inside me. "Awesome! Starter Pokémon!"

* * *

I follow Professor Juniper out into the main room, where a boy awaits. Dirty blonde hair clouds his head and his clear eyes are focused all around the room. He constantly snaps the button on a camera, taking numerous pictures.

"Hello, Trip!" Juniper says in a friendly tone. "Welcome!"

Trip smiles. "Hi, Professor Juniper. I'm finally ready to set off on my journey as a Pokémon Trainer!"

"I know you've waited a long time for this day," Juniper says. "Welcome to the world of Pokémon!"

I speak up. "So...hey! I bet you were so excited last night that you couldn't even sleep a wink!" I rub the back of my neck, blushing slightly. "I was the exact same way."

Trip meets my eyes, not giving any emotion. "Who are you?"

My blush and smile disappear. I've known this kid for less than three minutes and already I'm not a big fan of his attitude.

"Trip, meet Alice," Juniper introduces me. "She's come all the way from Pallet Town in the Kanto region."

"Nice to meet you, Trip!" I say.

Trip looks surprised. "From Pallet Town? Kanto region?!" He bursts into chuckles.

I frown. "Huh? What's so funny?"

"See, I was just thinking that a girl like you came from the boonies," he sneers.

My eyes widen. "Hm?" I spread my feet apart, like I'm in a battle position, and my hands clench into fists. "Hey! What do you mean, boonies?!" No one disses my region and gets away with it!

I hate this kid right now. I've known him for five minutes and already he pisses me off. Thank Arceus Pikachu isn't here to give him a piece of his mind. A thought comes to mind. Maybe Trip doesn't even know what a Pikachu is. I smile to myself in my head at the thought.

"Come on!" Juniper interrupts us. "Today's your first day as a Trainer! So it's a happy day!" She turns to a small cart. "Now, you can choose your partner from among these three types. The first is Tepig, a Fire-type!"

She takes a Poké Ball and throws it, a small orange pig coming out. It snorts.

"Tepig!"

I kneel down and smile. "Wow! Awesome! So you're called a Tepig!" He runs to the side and blows a few sparks of fire from his snout. "That's a Fire-type! Nice and fiery!"

Juniper chooses another Poké Ball. "Up next, here's Oshawott, a Water-type!"

She throws it and a tiny sea otter comes out. He smiles.

"Oshawott!"

"Aw!" I coo. "Aren't you the cutest!" Oshawott blushes and giggles.

"Finally," Juniper continues, taking the last Poké Ball. "Snivy, a Grass-type!"

The Poké Ball opens and reveals a slim, green snake-like Pokémon. It has a sly glint in its half-closed eyes.

"Snivy!"

I smile. "Cool! This one's got plenty of confidence!"

Snivy nods, as if to say, "You know it, sister!"

I stand up and look each Pokémon over. "Each one of 'em would be great to train, so it's gonna be one tough choice!" Personally, I wanna take all of them and train them all. They're all special in their own ways. Besides, Pikachu would like to have another couple friends.

"Don't forget, I'm the one who gets to choose!" Trip shoots at me.

I roll my eyes. "Don't worry. I know that. But if it was up to me..." I don't even care if he's listening to me. "...well, that's a tough one." Tepig, Oshawott, Snivy.

After a minute, Trip speaks. "Hm. I've decided. I'm choosing Snivy."

The green Pokémon smirks, while Tepig glares and Oshawott seems to faint with disbelief. I giggle at them.

"Okay." Professor Juniper hands him a device. "First of all, here's your very own Pokédex."

Trip takes it, smiling. "Thanks, Professor!" He holds it up to Snivy and it flips open, speaking.

**Snivy, the Grass Snake Pokémon. Cool, calm and collected, Snivy uses photosynthesis to collect energy with the leaf in its tail. **

I sneak up and look over his shoulder to read the description. Trip notices and flips it closed, glaring at me.

"And here are your Poké Balls," Juniper says as she hands him five Poké Balls. "You can carry up to six Pokémon around with you."

Trip takes the Poké Balls. "Yeah, that's basic."

"And this is Snivy's Poké Ball," she says, handing him another Poké Ball. "Take good care of it."

Trip nods. "Right." He points the Ball towards Snivy. "Alright, Snivy. So let's get this journey started!" Snivy's sucked into the Poké Ball in a red light.

Juniper smiles. "Have a great journey. Good luck."

"Thanks," Trip says. "Thanks for everything." He walks out of the lab.

I bite my lip. He seems so arrogant, so much like a know-it-all, and yet I have the urge to go follow him. I walk out I the lab and see him a few yards away.

I jump down the stairs and run towards him. "Trip! Wait up!" He turns to me, not smiling. "Hey, Trip." I catch up with him. "Goin' for Gym battles?"

He rolls his eyes. "That's basic. Pokémon Trainers go around challenging different Gyms and try to win eight badges." His clear eyes glow. "So they can enter the Unova League."

My eyes widen. "Really?! That's just like back in Kanto!"

"Pika pi!" a voice calls.

I turn to see a yellow shape run towards me. I smile. "Pikachu!" He jumps on my shoulder and nuzzles me. "Done with your tests, huh?"

"Pika," he nods.

"Who's that Pokémon?!" a surprised Trip yelps. I smirk at the fact I have a Pikachu and he doesn't. He takes out his Pokédex and holds it to my Pikachu.

**Pikachu, the mouse Pokémon, and the evolved form of Pichu. Pikachu's tail is sometimes struck by lightning, as it raises it to check its surroundings. **

He suddenly takes out his camera and snaps a few pictures of me and Pikachu, at different angles. I raise my eyebrow.

"What are you doing?" I ask, putting a hand on my hip.

Trip glares and points a finger in my face. "This is why we don't like people from the boonies. Listen up! A Pikachu in Unova's huge! It's a really big deal!"

I smile. "It's not a big deal. Pikachu's my number one partner and buddy!"

"Pika pika," he coos as I scratch his head.

"Huh?" Trip smirks. "Is it strong?"

I meet his sly look. "Oh, you bet!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu growls, smiling.

"You wanna see?" I challenge him.

"Sure I do," Trip says.

* * *

In the battlefield, Trip stands on one end and I stand on the other. What a perfect way to show that arrogant little brat how strong I am!

"Snivy, go get 'em, now!" Trip yells, throwing Snivy's Poké Ball.

Snivy appears in a flashing blue light. "Snivy!"

I turn to my buddy. "You ready, Pikachu?" He nods and jumps onto the ground, posing. "Alright! Use Quick Attack!"

My baby picks up speed and it trails behind him in a white blur as he runs towards Snivy. He smacks into the snake, resulting in the green Pokémon crying out.

"Pika!" Pikachu cries out gleefully.

"Alright!" Trip yells. "Snivy, use Vine Whip!"

Long vines snake out of Snivy's neck and lunge for Pikachu. They connect the first time, but Pikachu dodges the second time.

"Good!" I yell. "Now, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu smirks as I call out his signature move. He inhales and pushes out pressure, but no electricity comes out. Only a few sparks from his cheeks erupt.

"Huh?!" I gasp. "Pikachu, what's wrong?" He shrugs. "Alright, then! Use Volt Tackle!"

He charges at Snivy, but no electricity clouds him. He pants and stops running, sweat slicking off his yellow fur.

I bite my lip. What's wrong with my baby?!

"Is this some kind of strategy?" Trip asks, smirking. "Using moves your Pokémon doesn't even know?"

I glare. "Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"

Surprisingly, his tail shines into iron and glimmers. I smile. It's only with Electric-type moves. The tail of iron smashes down, but only connects with the ground. Snivy dodged it.

"Snivy, use Leaf Tornado!" Trip yells.

I gasp. "Leaf Tornado?! What's that?!"

Trip smirks. "Don't know it, do ya?" I grit my teeth.

Snivy spins and a storm of leaves gathers around it. They form a tornado and sweep up Pikachu. It smashes my buddy to the ground in a flash.

"Pikachu!" I yelp.

Once the dust is cleared, what I see completely breaks my heart. My baby, lying in the dirt, all bruised and scratched. I run to him and take him in my arms.

"Our first win," Trip says. "I thought we synched pretty well for a first battle. I'm glad I chose you." He returns Snivy to its Poké Ball. I stand up and run towards the lab. "I think you two better start over with the basics!"

* * *

Pikachu is hooked back up to the system and wires, looking dull because of our loss. But I could care less about that. All I care is getting my buddy back to normal.

"Professor Juniper!" I cry, tears threatening to spill. "So something's really not right with Pikachu after all."

Juniper frowns. "It appears that Pikachu has suffered an electrical overload of some kind."

"Huh?" I tilt my head. "Overload?"

She turns to me. "All that electrical energy Pikachu absorbed from the thunderstorm was too much."

"Right," Oak adds. "And that would explain why Pikachu's not able to use any Electric-type moves."

I can't believe it. "No way! You mean Pikachu's not able to use Electric-type moves anymore?" I look at my buddy with sadness.

Suddenly, the lights flicker and the monitor and system shorten out. We stare in confusion.

"Huh?" Juniper mumbles.

"What's going on?!" Oak cries.

Suddenly, Pikachu is shocked with electrical currents. I gasp. "Pikachu!"

"Huh?! Look! Professor Oak, that cloud!" Juniper yelps. Oak and I look to see the black cloud that caused Pikachu to lose his electrical energy.

"Huh?" Oak gasps. "It's the same cloud as before!"

Pikachu cries in pain, which stabs my heart. "Pikachu!" The system completely shuts off.

"Reload the system quickly!" Juniper orders to one of her helpers.

He nods. "Right!" He runs out of the room.

Juniper turns back to the window. "It couldn't be, could it? Could the source of those clouds be Zekrom, the legendary Pokémon?!"

My head shoots up. "Zekrom?"

Juniper continues. "Zekrom's quite a legend in these parts. From within its thunderclouds, Zekrom watches over people and Pokémon. And it's lightning bolts are said to be judgements from up above. And they're also the pillars that hold up the sky."

Suddenly, the wires connected to Pikachu snap off, and an electrical cloud covers my baby. He screams out and yelps.

"Pikachu!" I yelp in terror.


	2. Enter Iris and Axew!

Enter Iris and Axew!

Chapter 2

Enter Iris and Axew

The electric sparks and bolts fly everywhere in every direction, just barely coming into contact with my pale flesh. My Pokémon cries out in pain from the exploding lightning.

"Pikachu!" I yelp. "No! Pikachu!"

I hear Professor Juniper's strained voice from behind me. "The system! It's on overload! The lab could be destroyed!"

"All because of that lightning?!" Oak yells back. "Could the legendary Pokémon from Unova be behind all of this?!"

I bite my lip and keep my eyes focused on Pikachu. I have to think of something to save him! He doesn't deserve all this pain!

I remember how it all happened so fast. Just today, we arrived in the Unova region, all perky, excited and happy. A huge thundercloud hovered above us, though, and inside the cloud was a large black shape wih blood red eyes. We shrugged it off and went to Nuvema Town. But when Pikachu and I battled a new and arrogant Trainer, Trip, and his Snivy, Pikachu couldn't use any Electric-type moves. The poor baby was so confused about this, and he lost to Snivy. And now, while examining Pikachu, the thundercloud is back, and putting the whole lab in an electrical mess.

Pikachu cries out again. "Pika...!" Tears form in my eyes and I let a few dribble down my cheeks.

"Pikachu! Hang in there!" Without thinking, I step forward and wrap my arms around the electric mouse. We're both shocked, and we scream in pain.

Suddenly, I'm thrown back, lose my grip on Pikachu, and fall to the ground in a sparking heap.

Mom runs over to me, kneeling down. "Alice! No!"

Professor Juniper's confused question comes from behind me. "Hub? We're back online?"

Groaning, I force myself to sit up, rubbing my head. "Ugh."

"Alice, are you alright?" Mom asks in a worried tone.

A small blue and white shape is suddenly next to me. "Oshawott? Oshawott?"

I smile at them. "I'm okay. Wait! Pikachu!"

My eyes fly to the ground, where my Pokémon sits up, shaking his head. He looks at me. "Pika?" He smiles. "Pika!" His lightning bolt-shaped tail sparks alive with electricity.

I stand up, smiling. "Pikachu! Does that mean you're back to normal?"

"Pikachu!" he cries.

"Alright." I brave myself. "Now, use Thunderbolt on me!" He gathers lightning and releases it on me. I grit my teeth at the pain, but smile. "Wow! Nice shot! Volt Tackle, go!" Whole body glowing gold and yellow, with only a faint outline, Pikachu charges at me and slams into my stomach, knocking us both into the wall. I shake my head and stare at my Pikachu in my arms. "You're really alright!"

After recovering from the Electric-type attacks Pikachu released on me, I go outside, looking at the sunset. I smile.

"When it comes to Pokémon in the Unova region, there's so much stuff I don't know!" I turn to Pikachu, who's perched on my shoulder. "Know what I mean, buddy?" He coos, understanding me.

When dinner comes, I decide to tell everyone my plans for Unova. Pikachu smiles at me when I speak.

"I've decided that my next journey will be here!"

"Huh?" Mom and Professor Oak give me quizzical looks.

I smile. "For sure! I wanna meet all the Pokémon from Unova, and I'll make a bunch of new friends, too!"

Mom hides a smile. "Of course."

I raise my eyebrow. "Huh?"

"I knew it, Alice," she says. "No one knows you better than me."

"I presume you'll be visiting all the Pokémon Gyms?" Oak speaks up.

I nod. "That's the plan! I'm gonna go meet and beat the Gym Leaders, get eight badges, and then, win the Unova League!"

"Well then," Oak says. "I'll continue to look after your Pokémon back at my lab. Don't worry about a thing!"

"Pikachu?" Mom looks at the mouse. "Take good care of Alice."

He smiles. "Pika pika!"

"And call us from time to time," Oak adds. "I look forward to hearing about new Pokémon you've met. How does that sound?"

I smile so greatly that I feel my face start to hurt. "You got it!"

"Pika! Pikachu!" my Pokémon cheers.

After dinner, I go to Professor Juniper and tell her my plan for the Unova region. She simply smiles and hands me a Pokédex and six Poké Balls. "So, here's your Pokédex and Poké Balls."

I take them. "Thanks, Professor."

"The nearest Pokémon Gym from where we are is in Striaton City," she tells me. "So, I would think because of that, the best thing to do would be challenge the Striaton Gym first."

I nod. "Thanks! I'll do that."

"You know," she adds. "You might even bump into Trip. He left here ahead of you." She says the last part in a teasing tone.

I gasp, remembering the arrogant, clear-eyed boy who thought he knew everything. Him and his Snivy were so proud about their first win when they'd been together for only five minutes, when Pikachu and I have been together for about five years!

Shaking my head, I force a determined smile. "Next time I battle him, I'll win for sure! Right, Pikachu?"

"Pika pika!" he agrees.

When the sun rises, I'm already up and ready to start my journey. Mom, Professor Oak, Professor Juniper and I stand outside the lab. Mom keeps asking me embarrassing questions.

"Where's your handkerchief?" Before I can answer, she asks another one. "Are your clothes packed? Do you have clean underwear?"

I blush fiercely. "Don't worry, Mom. I'm not a little kid."

Professor Juniper turns to me. "There's a Pokémon Center on the other side of the forest. Stop by there if you need help."

I nod. "Right. See you later!" With that, I turn around and run off down the road.

While running, I notice Pikachu has jumped onto the ground, running beside me. I also notice I'm rambling to myself. "Maybe I'll meet a Bug-type Pokémon first. Or...a Grass-type or Water-type Pokémon!" Suddenly, I hear a rustle in the bush next to me. "Huh?"

"Pika!" Pikachu points to the leaves moving. A large dark purple shape constantly moves.

I raise my eyebrow and pull out my Pokédex, holding up to the shape. "A Pokémon?" The electronic springs to life.

**Axew, the Tusk Pokémon. Axew marks its territory by making scratch marks on trees with its tusks, which regrow if they fall out. **

I frown. The Pokémon on the Pokédex screen is a green Dragon-like Pokémon, not a spot of purple on it. "That doesn't look like this." I shrug and smile, taking out a Poké Ball. "I'll catch it anyway! Now, go, Poké Ball!"

I throw the Ball, and it touches the purple shape. Suddenly, it shrieks. "Ouch!"

I gasp. "Ouch?!"

The purple shape moves, and a girl is revealed. The purple seems to be her hair. "Okay, what was that for?!" She glares at me and stomps towards me.

Swallowing, I hold up my hands in defense. "See, I was only trying to catch a Pokémon."

She raises her eyebrow. "Oh, so what you're really telling me is that I look like a Pokémon. Your Pokédex—" She smiles. "—is this cute face in there? Tell me: is it?!"

I flinch. "No! Uh...sorry...?"

Her glare softens. "Fine. I accept your apology. But you've got a long way to go as a Trainer if you think I look like a Pokémon. Right, Axew?"

Creepily, the small Dragon-type Pokémon pops out of her hair and smiles. "Axew! Axew!"

I gasp, half because I've found the Pokémon in the Pokédex, and half because it came out of her hair. "Wow! That's where it was!"

The girl's eyes land on Pikachu and she gasps. "Whoa! No way! A Pikachu?!" Without asking me, she grabs him and squeezes him. "You've got to be the sweetest thing ever! And these jiggly cheeks... You can't find anything this jiggly in Unova!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu growls.

The girl seems to squeeze the life out of my Pokémon. "Well, I for one, am dying to know what a Pikachu is doing here! Oh come on! Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

She seriously can't tell Pikachu's mine? I bite my lip from saying that. "We're from Pallet Town in the Kanto region."

"Pallet Town?" she asks.

I nod. "Yeah! I'm Alice, and I wanna enter the Unova League!"

"Isn't that nice?" The girl smiles. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Iris." Suddenly, Pikachu releases his electricity, shocking her with a powerful bolt. She shrieks and falls to the ground, muttering something. I hide a giggle.

"Sorry 'bout that," Iris apologizes to Pikachu. The electric mouse just twitches his ear. Iris turns to me. "Tell me, Alice. Wasn't there a thunderstorm in Nuvema Town? Yesterday?"

I nod. "Sure was! Professor Juniper said Zekrom caused all that lightning."

Gasping, she springs from where she's sitting and leans into my face. "Whoa! Zekrom the legendary Pokémon caused it?! Please! I want to know everything!"

Suddenly, Pikachu points to the side. "Pika!"

I look up and see a deer like creature springing into the meadow. I stand up, smiling. "The Pokémon from yesterday!" With Pikachu on my shoulder, I start to chase the deer.

"Hey!" Iris calls after me. I can tell she's running after me. "Wait up! Alice!"

I look just above the bush I'm hiding behind and gasp. "Wow..." There are so many of those deer like Pokémon. I hold up my Pokédex and scan it.

**Deerling, the Season Pokémon. With the change of season, Deerling's appearance changes as well. **

I smile. "Wow! So those are Deerling! They're awesome!" I stand up, a Poké Ball in my hand. "Let's catch a Pokémon!" I throw it, and it flies for one of the Deerling, but it simply blocks it with its ear. I stare, dumbfounded.

Iris, who's holding Pikachu now, but not too tight, stands up and raises her eyebrow at me. "You don't get it. You act like a little kid. If you want to catch it, you've got to battle it."

I hate how she's talking to me like I'm the ten-year-old and she's the fifteen-year-old, while it's actually vice versa. "I knew that!" I defend myself. Why is she even following me? I didn't ask her to come along with me. "C'mon, Pikachu!"

Jumping out from Iris's arms, Pikachu lands in front of me on the ground. "Pika pika!"

One of the Deerling notices Pikachu in his battling position. "Deer? Deerling!" it calls to its herd. The other Deerling run away.

"Hey, wait up!" I yell.

"Pika!" Pikachu calls.

Suddenly, a herd of small brown Pokémon from the side charge at us. I yelp, trying to stay in one piece as they charge pass me and Pikachu. When they do, I feel dizzy.

"Okay, I get it!" I mutter. "Who was that Pokémon anyway?!" Failing to regain my balance, I fall to the ground.

Iris rolls her eyes. "It was a Patrat! You are a little kid!"

_Sorry if I don't know the name of a Pokémon I've never met before!_

At night, we decide to camp out under a tree, snacking on apples. Well, I'm hanging out under the tree, and Iris is hanging in the tree. I explain what she wants to know about the thunderstorm yesterday, including the part where Pikachu couldn't use any of his Electric-type attacks.

"I get it now," she says after a while. "Pikachu couldn't use any Electric-type moves because of Zekrom."

I nod. "Pikachu must've stored and then let out all of his electricity. Because of all the intense stuff Zekrom was up to. That's what the professor said."

"Well, Zekrom is a legendary Pokémon, you know," Iris says, like I don't know that already. She stands up. "I'd love to meet Zekrom someday! I can't wait to meet Zekrom!" I roll my eyes.

"Unova's got lots of cool Pokémon," I say. "Not just Zekrom. I'll meet them all." Silence. "Hm? Iris?" I look up to meet her sleeping form. Rolling my eyes, I sit back and stare up at the starry sky. "That Unova sky's full of stars. From now on, our journey's gonna be under this sky!"

Suddenly, a small flicker of bright light soars across the dark sky. "Pikachu!" my buddy exclaims.

I gasp, smiling. "A shooting star!" I stand up. "That's great! Good luck! Pikachu, don't you feel lucky, too?"

He smiles. "Pika pika!"

When the sun rises in the morning, Pikachu and I are already on the move. But when we woke up, Iris was nowhere to be found.

"Iris left early, you know?" I say. "I wonder where she could've gone?"

"Pika pika," Pikachu agrees.

Personally, I'm glad she's gone. Now she doesn't need to pester me and call me a kid anymore. I shrug and smile. "Well, no big deal. It's a brand new day!" I hear a cooing noise and look up. A small gray bird is flying in the sky. "Whoa! What's that?!" I hold up my Pokédex and scan it.

**Pidove, the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon. A Pidove flock's cooing can get extremely noisy. Pidove is attracted to shiny objects. **

I smile. "Cool! Pidove! Let's go!" Pikachu and I follow the Pidove, and soon find a whole flock of them. I point to one. "'Kay. Let's battle that one! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt, now!" Pikachu gathers electricity and shocks the bird, resulting in it cooing and fainting. I take out a Poké Ball. "Alright! Now, go Poké Ball—ah!"

The whole flock of Pidove turns on us and attacks me and Pikachu, sending waves of air at us. They try to score a hit on us, but we dodge them. Soon enough, they fly away, leaving me and my buddy alone, panting.

"Pikachu, you okay?" I ask him.

"Pikachu," he answers.

I shrug and look at the Poké Ball in my hand. "Guess it's never easy, is it? But no way am I giving up!" I look up to see a single Pidove, who doesn't seem to notice me. "One more! Let's get it this time! Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

I see my buddy gather wind and air around him, and he runs towards the Pidove, charging at an incredible speed. He smacks into the bird.

"Alright!" I yell. "Now, Iron Tail!" His tail glows and turns to steel, and he hits the Pidove with it. "Okay! Noes the time!" Taking my Poké Ball, I throw it. The Pidove's sucked into the ball, and it shuts. It shakes once, twice, three times and bursts open. "Oh, man! And I almost had it, too!" Suddenly, the Pidove flaps its wings repeatedly and dents waves of air towards Pikachu. "That's Gust! Hold on, Pikachu!" Suddenly, the Pidove flies straight at Pikachu, smashing into him. "Oh, no! That was Quick Attack!" The Pidove sends knives of air to Pikachu. "That was Air Cutter!" Before Pidove can use another move, I yell to Pikachu. "Dodge, Pikachu!" He does. "Alright! Thunderbolt, now!" Pikachu shocks the Pidove with strong lightning. "This is it!" I throw the ball. "Let's go, Poké Ball!" In a red flash of light, Pidove goes into the ball. It falls to the ground, shaking numerous times. I keep my eyes on it; I don't wanna lose sight of it if it escapes. Suddenly, the ball clicks shut, indicating I caught it. I gasp, realizing what just happened. Trying to contain my excitement, I smile. "Yes!" I pick up the Poké Ball and pose. "My first Unova region Pokémon! I caught a Pidove!"

"Pi! Pikachu!" my buddy shouts.

Unable to control myself, I pick Pikachu up and spin around with him. "We did it! We did it!" I cheer. Pikachu coos as I hug him tightly.

"Wow," a voice behind me says. I turn to sadly see Iris. "You're that excited over catching a little Pidove?" I hide a glare from her. "What a kid!"

I put Pikachu down. "Of course I'm excited! I've got a new friend! It's also my first Unova region Pokémon."

She shrugs. "Well, on second thought, you and that Pidove might be the perfect match."

Suddenly, two voices cry out in terror. I turn to see Pikachu and Axew in claws. Three figures glare at us.

"Ugh! You guys, again?!" I yell. This stuff is getting old.

"Again, the question, so twerpish indeed," a figure says.

"The answer to come as we feel the need," the other finishes.

_Bringing the blinding white light of evil into the future. _

_Thrusting the hammer of justice down onto the black darkness of the universe. _

_And carving our names in the rock of eternity!_

_The fiery destroyer, Jessie. _

_And with thunderous emotion, I am James. _

_Wisest of the wise: Meowth!_

_Now gather under the name of Team Rocket!_

"Team Rocket?" Iris asks, obviously clueless. "Who are they?"

"They're a group of bad guys who steal people's Pokémon!" I answer.

Jessie smirks. "Right. Evil deeds like stealing Pokémon are our stock and trade to rule the world! Because that's what we do!"

Iris glares at them. Axew's not yours, he's mine! Give him back!"

"I see," James says, looking at the struggling Axew. "So this is Axew."

"And we claim Axew as part of our takeover of the Unova region!" Meowth adds.

"Hold on," Iris says. "You must be a Meowth. What are you doing here? Forget about that! How can you talk?!"

Meowth straightens his whiskers. "Simple. I'm a genius. A Meowth that you only get to hear once in a lifetime."

Pikachu and Axew are dumped into a glass crate made of strong material. They pound on the glass, but it's not breaking. They cry and plead to get out.

"Stop," James says, smirking. "You're wasting energy."

I step up. "No way! Pidove, I choose you!" Throwing the Poké Ball, Pidove appears in a flash of blue light.

"She's using a region Pokémon, too!" James realizes.

"You're up, Meowth!" Jessie yells. "Show them not to mess with a Pokémon from Kanto!"

Meowth jumps for Pidove, claws glowing. "Fury Swipes!"

"Pidove, use Gust!" I yell. The bird flaps its wings and creates a wind storm. Meowth is tossed back to Jessie and James.

"Well, that could've been worse," Jessie mutters. "Try my Pokémon on for size!" She throws a Poké Ball and a blue bat comes out.

I gasp. "What's that?!"

"It's a Woobat!" Iris says. I don't bother looking it up in my Pokédex. Pikachu needs me now!

"A Woobat. That name's got a nice ring to it!" Meowth comments.

Jessie snorts. "Nice ring's a good thing. Woobat, use Air Slash!"

Woobat agents shears of air towards Pidove in a flash. "Dodge it, quick!" I scream. Pidove dodges the attacks. "Alright! Use Quick Attack!" Gathering wind, Pidove charges at Woobat.

"Dodge and use Gust!" Jessie commands. Woobat dodges Pidove and flaps its wings, knocking Pidove to the ground.

Iris and I run towards Pidove. I take it in my arms. "Pidove! Snap out of it!"

Jessie returns Woobat. "This was a worthwhile catch. Of course, I caught it."

"Our premium mission in Unova is complete! Off we go!" James says. Iris and I turn around to see them escaping into the air with their hot air balloon.

"Nice doing business with you twerps," Jessie sneers.

Iris and I rush towards them, and I return a tired Pidove. "I'm coming, Axew!" Iris yells. She jumps and climbs the nearest tree.

Following her, I yell, "Pikachu! Axew! We'll save you!" I surprise myself by scurrying up the tree faster than Iris, and when I reach the top, I jump up and leap for the cage Pikachu and Axew are in. My fingertips brush the glass, but I fall back down soon. I crash through the tree and land on my back on the cold hard ground.

Iris lands next to me, gasping. "You okay, Alice?"

I sit up, groaning. "Yeah. Ugh!"

Suddenly, a small shape runs past us. "Oshawott!"

I raise my eyebrow. "Oshawott?"

The sea otter takes the small shell on his belly and throws it at the balloon. It pops, descending to the ground. The glass cage breaks, and Iris and I run to catch our Pokémon.

"Pikachu!" I catch my baby in my arms, relieved he's safe.

"Axew!" Iris's Dragon-type falls into her arms.

I see Jessie, James and Meowth glaring at us. "You don't do that to us!" Jessie shouts at us.

Clenching my hands into fists, I glare. "Pikachu and Axew are our friends! You're not taking them!"

"Right!" Iris chirps in. "Listen to Alice, 'cause she's telling the truth!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" I yell. My Pikachu shocks at Team Rocket.

Jessie throws her Poké Ball. "Woobat, go!" It appears. "Use Air Slash!" It hits my Pikachu. "Air Slash, again!"

Suddenly, Oshawott jumps in front of Pikachu and Axew and releases a burst of water from its mouth. I smile and nod to him.

I yell to my Pikachu. "You can do it, Pikachu! Use Volt Tackle!"

Glowing, Pikachu charges at Team Rocket, but they disappear in a cloud of black smoke. When it clears, Pikachu is alone, looking confused.

"I guess Team Rocket got away," I say. Suddenly, Pikachu and Axew collapse onto the ground. I gasp. "Pikachu!"

"Axew!" Iris takes the small creature into her arms.

I do the same to Pikachu. "Pikachu, stay strong!" I plead.

"Let's hurry to the Pokémon Center!" Iris suggests.

"Right." We run off. "Thanks, Oshawott!"

At the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy smiles at us. "Thank you for waiting. I'm happy to say your Pokémon are feeling just fine." Pikachu, Pidove and Axew smile at us.

Axew jumps into Iris's arms, Pikachu in mine and Pidove flies just near my head. "Oh, I'm so relieved!" Iris says.

"That's great, Nurse Joy," I tell her. "Thank you."

Her eyes fall on Pikachu. "Hey! Seeing a Pikachu? That's very unusual."

"Guess so," I say, smiling. "See, we're from Pallet Town. This is the first Pokémon Center we've seen since coming to the Unova region."

She smiles. "Then welcome! And just like Kanto, if your Pokémon ever need help, or you need anything at all, feel free to stop by anytime!"

"Thank you." Pidove lands on my hand, puffing out its chest proudly. I giggle.

Iris speaks up. "I have to say, Alice. Not bad."

I turn to her. "Huh?"

"You're still a kid, but I am impressed," she says, winking. I don't know what she's impressed at me for. Saving Axew? Catching a Pokémon? Trying to stop Team Rocket? "Thank you. You saved Axew."

"Ax! Axew!" he says.

"Hm." I smile. "Well, we should both thank Oshawott. Right, buddy?"

"Pika!" he cheers.

I stare out the window and into the sunset. "I still can't figure out why Oshawott helped us like that..."

Best Wishes  
Rival Destinies  
Adventures in Unova


	3. A Sandile Gusher of Change!

A Sandile Gusher of Change!

Chapter 3

A Sandile Gusher of Change

The warm sun beats down on my back, creating tiny drops of sweat on my forehead. I quickly wipe it with the back of my hand, wishing we had water or some kind of liquid to drink. I hope we hit a lake or something.

As Iris and I walk along, I put my mind to other things, like how I'm going through phases. With my age—fifteen—I feel weird not having my first relationship yet. I haven't even been kissed yet, and I feel embarrassed about it. I doubt I'll find someone who'll like me in Unova, since no one in Kanto did.

Crazily, I wonder if Trip likes me... Nah. If he did, he wouldn't act like I'm the amateur Trainer, when I've been one for five years. Besides, he's arrogant and obnoxious—so not my type.

Trying to ease the uneasy silence between me and my traveling partner, I speak up and try to start a conversation. "So, why are you coming along with me anyway?"

She glares. "Excuse me, but it's not that I'm coming along with you. It's that you're coming along with me. Get it?"

I blink. No way am I coming along with her! I didn't bug her about anything! She joined me, I didn't join her! It's my journey, not hers! "Oh please," is all I can mutter.

"It's true!" she protests. She inches in front of me while walking, but I do the same. This goes on for a while, until she groans and steps in front of me, blocking my path. "Who said you could walk in front of me?!"

Okay, now she's being completely ridiculous! "No one!" I shoot back.

She crosses her arms. "Look. I figured since you don't know the Unova region, I'd help you out. But what do I get for trying to be a little nice? Obviously not even a thank you."

I glare at her. She's really starting to get on my nerves. "I don't remember you asking me if I wanted you to come along!"

"Sure," she says, rolling her eyes and smirking. "Go ahead and act like a tough girl. You're such a kid!"

A growl erupts from Pikachu. "Oh, yeah?! You're such a kid, too!"

"Pika!" my buddy adds.

Iris glares at me. "You have some nerve saying that to me!"

We hold a vicious glare at each other, but a small shape catches my eye. I turn to see the small Oshawott who helped us with Team Rocket.

"Oshawott!" he cheers, smiling. "Osha! Osha! Oshawott!"

I gasp. "It's you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu yells.

"Oshawott!" Iris gasps.

I smile. "I remember!" Holding up my Pokédex, I scan the small Pokémon.

**Oshawott, the Sea Otter Pokémon. Oshawott attacks and defends using the scalchop that can be removed from its stomach. **

I smile. "Thanks for helping us back there," I say. He smiles. "It I don't understand what you're doing here now." He chirps in his own Oshawott language. "Huh?"

Pikachu smiles. "Pika pi." Using his own Pikachu language (that I can partly understand) he explains it.

I smile. "Wow! So you were following us?"

Nodding, Oshawott cries, "Oshawott! Oshawott!"

Iris squeals and seems to shove me out of the picture. "You're so cute! And you were following me!" She grabs him and squeezes him. "If your skin was any softer and your cheeks any squishier, I couldn't stand it! Of course, since you can't live without me, I promise I'll keep you as my very own Pokémon!"

I can't help feeling a twinge of hurt. If anyone had to claim Oshawott as their own, I'd love to have him as my own. Even though I already have Pidove, it wouldn't hurt to have another Pokémon on my side.

Suddenly, Oshawott jumps out of Iris's arms and shakes his little head. Iris looks confused. "Huh?" He runs over to me and climbs up to my shoulder.

"Huh?!" I gasp. "What's going on?!" Pikachu's knocked off by Oshawott and lands on the ground with a thud. "Pikachu!"

He looks unhappy. "Pika!"

"Osha!" Oshawott retorts.

Iris raises her eyebrow. "Are you saying you like Alice?"

Oshawott nods. "Wott, wott! Oshawott!" He hops off my shoulder.

Suddenly, Pikachu sends a bolt of lightning towards Oshawott, but he blocks it, using the small shell-shaped scalchop from his belly. The bolt bounces off and hits me instead. I fall on my back in the grass.

Iris and Axew giggle. I glare at them as I struggle to sit up.

"What was that for?!" I yelp, feeling the pain from the lightning. Oshawott chirps with his Pokémon language.

Iris speaks up. "Hey, Alice, I'm starting to get the feeling Oshawott would like to be caught by you."

I feel my eyes light up. "Yeah? What do you know? Well, since you really helped us out with Team Rocket, do you wanna come along with us?" He nods eagerly and I stand up. "Okay, Oshawott!" I throw a Poké Ball. "Go, Poké Ball!" It soars towards Oshawott and touches his head, but bounces off and hits the ground. I frown. "What's up with the Poké Ball bouncing off of Oshawott's head like that?"

"Oshawott..." The sea otter runs his sore head.

It all comes together in my head. "Wait a minute. Are you...are you the Oshawott from Professor Juniper's lab?!" He nods. I turn to Iris. "I guess that would mean Oshawott's Poké Ball's gotta be back at the professor's lab as well."

"That's where Oshawott went!" Professor Juniper's voice is thick with relief. "I was so worried when Oshawott left without letting me know."

I nod. "Yeah. Looks like Oshawott's been following us."

"Well, Alice, if it wouldn't be too much of a bother, maybe you can take care of Oshawott from now on."

My smile almost cracks my face. "Wow! You don't mind?!"

She smiles. "No, of course not! I'll send you his Poké Ball right away."

In the small machine next to the caller, a Poké Ball appears. I take it. "Thanks! Got it!"

"And Alice?" Juniper starts. "Since Oshawott has a tendency to disappear, keep an eye out. Thanks! See you soon!"

I shut off the caller and turn around, but only find emptiness. I gasp. "It's gone!" Iris and I run outside to search. "This is nuts! Where could Oshawott have gone?!"

Iris smirks. "Well, I guess I'll have to help you look around."

I bite my lip from retorting a smart remark. "I can do it myself, thank you," I growl.

"Now, since we're both Pokémon Trainers, you don't have to go around acting like a little kid, you know," she says.

I can't tell you how sick I am of her little kid remarks! I hate it as much as I hate her! But I try to ignore her. I turn to Pikachu. "Let's go, Pikachu."

"Pikachu," he agrees. We start to walk away without Iris.

"Hm?" She notices we're walking away. "Hey! Wait a minute! Stop being so stubborn!"

Suddenly, the ground underneath us gives out and we fall into a well dug ditch. We yelp as we land, rubbing our sore spots.

"Ugh," I groan. "That hurts!"

Iris looks up. "What's going on?"

"Looks like a trap," I answer.

"Pika," Pikachu says.

I look around, taking in the surroundings. "If it is, who could've done this?"

"Pika!" My buddy points up to something.

"Sandile," a new voice says from above.

"Huh?" Iris and I look up and see a boy about my age, looking down at us.

Once the boy helps us out of the ditch, I decide to look up the Pokémon he mentioned earlier. "Sandile?"

**Sandile, the Desert Croc Pokémon. Its dark membrane protects its eyes from the sun, and buries itself in the sand with eyes and nose sticking out. **

"Wow," I say, putting my Pokédex away.

Iris smiles at the new boy. "I'm Iris, and I can't thank you enough for helping us!" She motions to me. "And this is Alice."

_I can introduce myself, you know. _

The boy smiles. "Hi. My name's Dan, and my family and I operate a resort spa and hotel not too far from here."

"This is so cool, because I happen to adore resort spas!" Iris cheers.

"Me, too," I say.

Dan scratches the back of his head. "Well, it makes me really happy to hear that, but it makes me really sad to say we're closed right now. Because of Sandile."

My eyes widen. "Huh?"

"Our hot sand spas are our most biggest attractions," Dan says. "Unfortunately, now it looks like this." He motions to the empty sand spas.

I stare at the site. "Whoa. That's too bad."

Dan turns to us. "It just happened a short time ago." He tells us how the Sandile who just came for the hot sand and relaxation suddenly turned destructive. "So for now, I'm afraid we're going to have to stay closed."

"I don't understand how a bunch of furry Sandile could've gotten destructive," Iris says.

"Yeah," Dan sighs. "We don't have any idea either."

I smile. "So, why don't we help 'em find out? C'mon!" In a flash, I'm wrapped up in sand and relaxing. "Man, it doesn't get any better than this..."

Iris glares. "I give. What are you doing?"

"Well, before we figure it out, we need research first," I answer.

"All you care about is checking out the hot sand," Iris accuses me. I ignore her and feel the hot sand melt away the tense muscles in my body. I hear Axew shuffle in the sand and sigh happily. "Not you, too."

I sigh. "This is the best..."

"Alice, I thought we were searching for Oshawott! Remember?" Iris snaps.

I gasp and jump from the relaxing hot sand. "I forgot!" I turn to the side. "Hm?" I run to one of the hot sand baths and see Oshawott. "Oshawott!" I say, relieved. "Hold on. Have you been lying here this whole time?"

"Oshawott," he answers.

I smile. "That's one happy Pokémon."

"Huh?" Suddenly, the ground erupts from behind us and a brown Pokémon reveals itself.

"You see?!" Dan shouts, pointing to it. "That's the leader of the Sandile!"

"Huh?!" I gasp. It has on a pair of red sunglasses.

The Sandile leaps up and locks its jaws around Axew. "No!" Iris shouts. "Axew!"

I stand straighter. "We'll save you! Don't worry! Pikachu, Thunderbolt, go!"

"Alice!" Iris shouts at me. "If you use Thunderbolt, then Axew will get hurt!"

"Huh?" I remember the type disadvantages and everything. Sandile looks like a Ground-type, and Electric-type moves like Thunderbolt will only hurt Axew, since it'll have no effect on Sandile.

Iris runs to the Sandile, kneels down and starts pulling on it. "Now, let go of my Axew or else!"

I help pull. "Open your mouth! Come on!" Pikachu and Oshawott even help out. "Let's pull hard, all at once." We do, and Sandile let's go of Axew, but grabs Pikachu and Oshawott. "Pikachu! Oshawott!" I scream.

The Sandile starts to scurry away with them, but is lifted off the ground by some kind of machine in a truck. I look at the drivers and recognize them as Team Rocket.

"Open your ears, the question indeed," Jessie starts.

"The answer to come as we feel the need!" James finishes.

_We bring the white light of evil into the future!_

_Hammering justice on the black universe!_

_Carving our names in the rock of eternity!_

_The fiery destroyer, Jessie. _

_With thunderous emotion, I am James!_

_Wisest of the wise: Meowth!_

_Now gather under the name of Team Rocket!_

I grit my teeth. "Team Rocket!"

"Don't you ever give up?!" Iris yells at them.

"Give us back our Pokémon!" I scream.

Jessie leans out the window. "There's a huge flaw in your presence since they're now our Pokémon." They drive the truck away, along with Pikachu, Oshawott and Sandile.

Slipping on my jacket, Iris, Dan and I chase after the truck. A small canister flies out to the back from the from and it explodes, sending smoke everywhere.

"Ugh!" I groan. I wave away the smoke, trying to see clearly.

"Alice! Up there!" Iris yells. She points to a small mountain, where the truck is.

We climb the mountain and hide behind a rock, seeing Pikachu, Oshawott, Sandile and many other Sandile. Other kinds of wild Pokémon are there, too.

"There they are!" I hiss, relieved.

"Yeah," Iris whispers back to me. "And check out all those wild Pokémon, too."

"So, what's going on?" Dan asks us. I shrug my shoulders.

Suddenly, the ground begins to rumble beneath our feet and a burst of water shoots from the ground. I gasp.

"What's that?!" I yelp.

"A geyser!" Dan answers.

I tilt my head. "Huh?"

"It's boiling water that shoots up from under the ground," Iris tells me.

"I've never seen a geyser around here!" Dan says.

We see the Sandile "talk" to the Pokémon, and they start to walk.

"Looks like the Sandile with the sunglasses is guiding them all somewhere," Iris says.

Dan stands up. "I'll bet you that the Sandile are trying to protect the other Pokémon! I'm beginning to wonder that's the reason they came to the sand baths in the first place! That they were really just trying to warn us all about danger from the geyser!"

"Is that why Sandile stole Axew?" Iris asks.

I turn to her. "It was trying to save Axew! That Sandile's alright." I see Pikachu. "Hey! Pikachu!" He looks at me and smiles.

The ground rumbles again. "That sounds huge!" Dan says.

More geysers break out, and in a flash, the Pokémon—not including Oshawott, Pikachu and the Sandile—are surrounded by hot, boiling water.

"They're surrounded by boiling water!" Iris yelps. "Now what to we do?!"

"There's gonna be trouble if another big one flows!" Dan says.

The ground shakes again. "Like right now!" Iris whimpers.

I glare. "Alright!" Gritting my teeth, I run towards the water and dip my leg in, but with even my jeans, the water melts right through, leaving a burning feeling on my leg. I yelp and shrink back to the land, clutching my leg in pain.

Iris and Dan run towards me. "Alice, you can't wade through that boiling water!" Iris says.

"But I've gotta do something to save them!" I protest.

The Sandile seem to understand me and bite onto each other's tails. They form a long chain.

"What are they trying to do?!" Iris asks.

I smile. "I know! The Sandile are making a bridge!"

"Good luck, Sandile!" Dan yells.

"You can do it!" Iris cheers.

The Sandile stretch across the boiling water, creating a bridge for the wild Pokémon to cross over. "Yeah!" I shout. "Awesome! Everyone, cross over the bridge!" They don't move.

"What's the matter?" Iris asks.

"They're all scared," Dan answers.

I bite my lip. "Hey! You've gotta hurry and cross! I've gotta help them!" Pikachu and I run across the Sandile bridge and go over to the wild Pokémon. "C'mon! Let's all get on the Sandile bridge and cross over together!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu encourages them.

One by one, the Pokémon cross over to the other side to Dan and Iris. "Okay," I say. "Hurry!" I feel more water coming towards us.

"Keep it up!" Iris yells to them.

"There's not much time!" Dan shouts.

I turn to Pikachu. "Pikachu, why don't you go on ahead?"

"Pikachu," he says, nodding. He runs across the bridge in a flash.

The Sandile on the small piece of land starts to slip into the water. Gasping, I grab onto it, holding onto it and pulling it back.

"Oh, no!" Iris yells. "Alice!"

"'Kay," I grunt. "Hang on a little longer! You can do it, Sandile! Just a little bit more!" A gush of hot water jumps from the hot lake and aims for me. Another blast of water blocks it from me, and I turn to see Oshawott cheering. But he's in the air. And he falls towards the hot water. "No! Oshawott!" I grab his Poké Ball. "Oshawott, return!" He does. "Great, Oshawott."

The Sandile I'm holding slips out of my grasp, and just when I think I'm a goner, a hand grabs my arm. I smile once I see Iris, who's climbed the Sandile bridge to help me.

"That was pretty crazy, Alice," she says.

I smile. "Nah. That was nothing. Sandile, give it just one more push, 'kay?"

He yelps and the bridge goes straight upwards, lifting Iris and I up into the air. "Awesome!" We crash to the ground, hurt but relieved.

I hate to admit it, but relaxing in hot water is way better than hot sand. "Hot water feels awesome!" I sigh.

"Yeah!" Iris agrees. "Five stars without a doubt!"

Dan smiles. "Wow! Thanks."

"We now have a brand new attraction!" Dan's dad announces proudly.

"Yeah," I say. "There's nothing more relaxing than a hot spring."

Iris nods. "Yeah."


	4. The Battle Club and Tepig's Choice!

The Battle Club and Tepig's Choice!

Chapter 4

The Battle Club and Tepig's Choice

Finally, when I step into the sunlight and out of the forest, I see the lights and buildings of Striaton City. I smile, knowing my first Unova Gym badge is just a few yards away.

"Yeah!" I cheer. "We've finally reached Striaton City! Time for a Gym battle!"

"Pika!" Pikachu adds.

"Uh, not quite, Alice," Iris says, walking past me. "This is Accumula Town. Striaton City is the next town over."

My jaw drops open. "What?!"

"But of course you wouldn't know that," Iris chirps. "You're a kid!"

_Sorry if I haven't been to the Unova region before, and don't know one city from the next!_

I hang my head. "Wow. Bummer. I was so psyched to have a Gym battle!"

Iris turns to me. "Then why don't you go to the Pokémon Battle Club? That's where I'm going right now."

"Pokémon Battle Club, huh?" I ask. "So, what's that?"

Iris shrugs. "Of course you wouldn't know that, either."

I glare. "Well, we didn't have many Pokémon Battle Clubs in Kanto."

Iris leads me into a huge building once we enter Accumula Town. "Here. This is the Pokémon Battle Club." She points to an electronic board. "And that's the Bulletin Board." She clicks a button, which shows different profiles of Trainers. "See? Each Trainer enters their Pokémon's profile as well as the type of Pokémon they want to battle against. It's an awesome place for Trainers to sharpen their skills by battling as they see this!"

I smile. This does seem like a cool place to train. Besides, Pikachu could use the extra training.

We walk into one of the battle rooms, where two Trainers are facing off.

"Perfect timing!" Iris says. "Looks like they're just about to start battling."

"Wow!" I exclaim. "Alright!" I notice two unusual Pokémon—one green and one blue—and scan the green one first with my Pokédex.

**Servine, the Grass Snake Pokémon, and the evolved form of Snivy. Service whips its opponents with vines, and dodges their attacks by hiding in the shadows of fake foliage. **

**Dewott, the Discipline Pokémon, and the evolved form of Oshawott. Through rigid training, Dewott uses the double scalchop technique to accomplish its fluid swordsmanship. **

"Servine!" its Trainer yells. "Use Leaf Blade!" The Pokémon's leaf-shaped tail glows, ready to strike.

Dewott's Trainer calls to his Pokémon. "Dewott! Water Gun!" Dewott lets a stream of water burst from its mouth, and it hits Servine square in the face. The green Pokémon rolls on the ground near my feet.

"Okay!" a new voice yells. "Enough!" I look to see a strong-looking man. "Take your Servine to be healed," he tells the Servine's Trainer.

He runs to the green Pokémon. "Servine! You okay?"

"Servine..." it replies weakly. The boy scoops his partner up and rushes out of the battle room.

The man turns to me and Iris. "We'll take care of all your battle needs. I welcome you to the Pokémon Battle Club. My name is Don George. I'm the battle manager."

"My name's Iris," the perky girl says. "I'd like to introduce you to Alice. Hi!"

_I can introduce myself, Iris. _

"Iris was just telling me that anyone can have a battle here if they want to," I say.

Don George nods. "Right. That's correct."

"I'm gonna challenge the Striaton Gym," I explain, "and I wanna get ready!"

I feel Pikachu jump onto my shoulder. "Pika!"

Don George gasps. "A Pikachu!" He rubs Pikachu's head. "How unusual to see one in the Unova region!"

"Excuse me," a voice speaks up. I see the Dewott's Trainer. "Is that Pikachu yours?"

I nod. "Yeah."

"Would you like to have a Pokémon battle with me?" he asks.

I smile. "I was just looking for someone to battle with! You're on!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"Ready, Pikachu?" I ask.

"Pika!" He jumps off my shoulder and onto the battlefield.

Suddenly, in a flash of blue light, Oshawott jumps out of his Poké Ball. "Huh?"

"Oshawott!" he yells determinedly.

I raise my eyebrow. "Why did you come out on your own like that?"

"Osha!" he 'explains.'

"Pika pika," Pikachu tries to reason.

But Oshawott pushes him out of the way, wanting to battle. "Oshawott!"

"Dewott, let's go!" The boy I'm facing off against throws a Poké Ball, and Dewott comes out.

"Dewott!" he cries.

Oshawott cringes, puts Pikachu in front of him, turns him towards Dewott, and crosses his arms, pleased with himself. "Osha... Oshawott. Oshawott."

"'Kay, now that that's settled, Oshawott, return." Oshawott returns to his Poké Ball without a problem.

"Pika!" Pikachu yells.

"Begin!" Don George yells to begin the battle.

I make the first move. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu shoots lightning at Dewott.

"Dodge it, Dewott!" its Trainer commands. Dewott just missed getting shocked by the stream of lightning.

I gasp. That's a fast Pokémon. Usually, no victim can dodge Pikachu's Thunderbolt attacks. "Alright! Iron Tail, let's go!"

Pikachu's tail glimmers with steel and it injures Dewott with a critical hit. "Dewott! No!" the boy yells.

"Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!" I yell. Clouded with bolts and electricity, Pikachu charges for Dewott.

"Dodge it!" Dewott easily dodges the attack. "Alright! Razor Shell!"

Grabbing the two scalchops on its thighs, Dewott extends them to full weapons and lashes at Pikachu with them. Pikachu hits the wall, weak and scared. "Pikachu!" I yelp. My buddy can't lose the battle!

Suddenly, an alarm is heard from outside. It sounds important, so I forget what I'm about what move to order Pikachu to use.

"Uh-oh," I mutter. The boy and I stop our Pokémon and look at the door, where three people, who look like they work here, stand, looking worried.

One of the pupils speaks. "Battle manager sir, it's the emergency alarm!"

"Something's in the storage room!" a second one adds.

"Probably that mystery Pokémon," the third says.

Don George nods. "Right." He turns to me and the boy with the Dewott. "We'll have to suspend your battle for now." With that, he leaves with the three pupils.

"Oh, man," I mutter. "Mystery Pokémon?"

Iris jumps next to me. "How cool is that?!"

"Yeah!" I say, smiling. "Let's go check it out!"

"Right," she agrees. We both follow Don George and the pupils.

"It doesn't look like much was stolen," the first pupil tells Don George.

He grunts. "The security camera must've recorded something. Let's review it."

Once we're in the security booth, I ask the main question on my mind. "So, what's going on?"

"The food in the storage room has been stolen a lot lately, and there have been unidentified Pokémon sightings, too. So we found it necessary to set up this security system, to get to the bottom of all this," Don George answers.

I smile, my heart quickening. "Awesome! If it's a new kind of Pokémon, I wanna catch it!"

Iris rolls her eyes at me. "Such a kid. You can't find a new Pokémon that easily."

"You're right," I reluctantly say.

"Bit at the same time, that's why it's so exciting!" Don George says.

The pupil at the computer turns to us. "Battle manager sir, we're ready to go."

"Good," he says. "Let's just see what went on."

"Sir," the pupil says. "Here it is." He plays the video.

The camera shows a black shape jumping from the storage room, and three visible shapes backing out carelessly. I recognize them as Team Rocket.

"Two people?" the pupil asks.

I gasp. "I know them! Team Rocket."

"Pika," Pikachu growls.

"Who's Team Rocket?" the battle manager asks me.

I answer without turning to him. "They're a bunch of bad guys who steal Pokémon from people."

"Not them again!" Iris groans.

"Well, the security system caught more than those guys," Don George tells us.

I turn to him, Iris doing the same. "Huh?"

"I'd like you to play that part of the security tape once more," he tells the pupil.

"Sir," he nods. He rewinds the tape back to the skinny black shape.

My eyes widen. "Huh? A shadow."

"Dark and skinny," Iris describes. "What kind of Pokémon is that?"

I take out my Pokédex and press the search button. I type in Umbreon and show them the entry. "Looks to me like this Pokémon."

**Umbreon, the Moonlight Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. The rings on Umbreon's body glow brightly when exposed to the moon's aurora, and gains a mysterious power.**

Iris stares at the entry in awe. "Wow! That's so cool!"

"But Umbreon don't normally live in the Unova region," the battle manager says. "If we discovered one, it would be a huge find!"

"Alright! Let's keep our eyes open and find Umbreon!"

At Don George's words, his three pupils nod. "Sir!" All four of them run off to find Umbreon.

Iris taps me on the shoulder. "Alice, what do you say we go and help them out?"

I nod eagerly. "Sure! Let's go!"

I place bowls full of food in a line, so Umbreon knows where to come. I turn to Iris, who's also setting up bowls. "Hey, Iris! I'm done setting up the Pokémon food. Now what?"

She presses a finger to her lips to shush me. "Shh! I think the best thing we can do is split up so we can keep a sharp eye on this place. You see, Umbreon's gotta be really hungry, so it'll definitely fall for this. I'll be waiting from over there." She points behind the storage room. "Now, if you see Umbreon, let me know." She runs behind the building, but reappears a few seconds later. "I'm planning to catch it, if you don't mind." With that, she disappears.

"Huh?" I smile to myself. "Of course. She would say that."

"Pika." Pikachu nods in amusement.

Suddenly, my little sea otter comes out of his Poké Ball. "Oshawott! Osha!"

"Oshawott?" I turn to him. "What's going on?"

He looks at me. "Oshawott! Osha! Wott!"

I smile. "Oh! You wanna help out, huh? Sure! That's great!"

"Oshawott!" he cheers.

I kneel down to Pikachu and Oshawott. "Now you and Pikachu guard this area, 'kay?" They nod. "While you're doing that, I'm gonna get more Pokémon food. I'll be over there." With that, I run off.

In another storage room, I see more bags of Pokémon food. I tear one open and fill another two bowls. I take them out by the main storage room, and place them down. Oshawott and Pikachu are nowhere to be seen, though.

Hearing a small noise, I hide in one of the bushes. I wait for the source of the noise to come out and reveal itself. "Huh?" A small black shape comes out and buries it's snout in the food. "Yes! It's about time, Umbreon." I take out a Poké Ball, ready to catch it. I know Iris wants Umbreon for herself, but she doesn't know a thing about raising a Pokémon from my region. I stop and stand up, taking a closer look at the creature. "Huh?"

It's not black at all. It's fire-colored and just dirty. A rope is tied around its snout. And the poor thing's skinny. It looks at me, fear in its eyes. "Tepig?!"

I raise my eyebrow. "Hold on. That's not Umbreon." I take out my Pokédex and hold it up to the Pokémon.

**Tepig, the Fire Pig Pokémon. Normally, fire shoots out of Tepig's snout, but it shoots out smoke instead when it is feeling ill. **

"A Tepig," I whisper. "That's one of the three starter Pokémon a new Trainer can choose. The Unova region's got amazing Pokémon!" I take a good look at the creature from where I'm standing. "So skinny, and dirty! No wonder we thought it was Umbreon." I raise my eyebrow. "What's that?" The rope is tight around its snout, and it seems to be cutting into the skin. "Hey! That rope's tangled around its snout! And that's making it hard for Tepig to eat." I straighten up and step away from the bush, closer to the Tepig. He backs away. "Hold on!" He backs up against the wall.

Iris comes out from where she's hiding, and Tepig runs away. "Alice, what are you doing?"

I try to run after Tepig, but he's too fast. "Wait up!" I turn to Iris. "I figured out who the mystery Pokémon is!" I chase after Tepig.

"You did?!" Iris runs after me. "Slow down! I wanna catch it!"

I chase Tepig down into an alley, and corner it. It stares at me, shaking. Oh, how can I make it understand I'm not here to hurt it?!

"Don't worry," I whisper, coming closer. "It's okay. I'm not here to hurt you. Really!" I kneel down and gently pick him up. He struggles to get free, but I hold him tightly. "You don't have to be scared." I hold him up, so his face is exactly across from mine. I giggle. "See?" Suddenly, he inhales and blows a dark cloud of black smoke in my face. I shake my head, coughing to get the foul taste out of my mouth. I look at Tepig. "Told ya. I won't hurt ya." I smile at him, since he seems to calm down.

"Tepig?" he asks.

"I'll bet you'd like to eat some yummy Pokémon food, right?" I ask him.

"Tepig!" He nods vigorously.

"Okay." I sit down, place him down and try to get the rope off his snout. "You sit here. I'll get that off of you." I try to pull the rope off, but it's tied way too tightly. I see tiny spots of black where he's bruised.

Iris cringes. "Be gentle. It looks like it's pretty tight."

"It is," I whimper. "Oh, man." I struggle with the rope. "Who would do such a terrible thing?"

After wiping the dirt off Tepig, his coat shines like a brand of rich fire. He nuzzles me with his snout once I rip the rope off. Iris places a bowl of food in front of him. "Here."

I smile. "There. Now, you eat up." Tepig smiles and digs into the food.

"Thank goodness," Iris sighs in relief.

"You must've been really hungry, Tepig," I say. "Hey! Don't eat it too fast!" I giggle at the little pig, munching down the food. "Slow's the way to go!"

Once Tepig's been fully fed and clean, he sleeps on my shoulder. I carry him back to the Battle Club with Iris.

"Tepig seems back to normal after all that Pokémon food," Iris comments.

"Yeah," I whisper. "Everything'll be just fine."

We see Don George and his pupils coming down one of the corners, and he sees us. "Hey, Alice!"

"Hi there, Don George." I'm careful to talk steady. I don't wanna wake Tepig up.

"Well," he starts. "We thought we'd found Umbreon, and so we all went chasing after it. But it was a complete hoax."

I motion to Tepig, still sleeping. "Hey. Look at this."

His eyes widen. "What's Tepig doing here?"

I begin to explain. "That shadow we thought was Umbreon actually turned out to be this Tepig instead. And this rope was tied around its snout, so it couldn't eat, and then it got really skinny. That's why I thought it was an Umbreon back when we saw it in the video."

He nods. "Well, what do you know?" Suddenly, he gasps. "Say, I remember this Tepig now!"

"You know Tepig?" I ask, curiosity leaking into my voice.

He nods sadly. "Yes. A Trainer who once visited our Battle Club simply abandoned Tepig. Tepig lost the battle, and its Trainer said he had no use for a weak Pokémon. So he tied it to a stake and left. I wanted to untie Tepig, but it chewed itself loose and disappeared before I could get to it. Tepig must've been looking for its Trainer, which would explain why it was wandering over town."

I snuggle the tiny creature. "Poor thing. How could do someone do something so terrible? To a Pokémon they were traveling and battling against?"

Iris glares. "If I ever meet that Trainer, I'll teach him a lesson he'll never forget!"

Tepig stirs in my arms, and I notice he's awake. "Sorry we woke you up, Tepig," I apologize. He just coos and snuggles into my arms. "Huh?"

I turn to the side and see two people—obviously Team Rocket—carrying a sack. They see us. "It's the twerps!"

"Team Rocket!" I yell.

"Oh, not you guys again!" Iris groans.

My grip tightens protectively around Tepig's body. "What bad stuff are you guys up to this time?!"

"You and your assumptions," James growls. "Ciao!" They start to walk away.

Suddenly, Oshawott comes out from behind the building and yells to them. "Osha! Osha! Oshawott!"

"Oshawott?" I ask. "What's going on?"

I hear a faint noise and the sack Jessie's carrying moves. "Pika pi!"

"That voice!" I yelp. "Who's that? Pikachu!" I yell for him.

"Who's that voice, so naïve indeed," Jessie starts.

"We'll answer you, when feel the need!" James finishes.

_Bringing the white light of evil into the future!_

_Thrusting the hammer of justice onto the black darkness of the universe!_

_Carving our names in the rock of eternity!_

_The fiery destroyer, Jessie. _

_And with thunderous emotion, I'm James!_

_Wisest of the wise: I'm Meowth. _

_Now gather under the name of Team Rocket!_

"It's that talking Meowth!" one pupil gasps.

"Which means Meowth is one of the bad guys," Don George says.

I growl. "Give me back Pikachu!"

"Ha!" James laughs. "Not after you left it in a box!"

"How could you abandon your Pokémon?!" Jessie adds, smirking. "We just saved Pikachu from harm. From a Trainer of the lowest order!"

I grit my teeth. What are they talking about?! I never left Pikachu alone in a box! And even if they are Team Rocket, I still feel uncomfortable with someone telling me I abandoned him. That reminds me of Tepig's original Trainer.

"And that gives us owner's right!" James says.

"You're wrong again!" I scream. "Oshawott, use Water Gun!" Using some kind of shield, they block the attack and lift off in some kind of contraption. "Come back!" I yell. I try to run towards them, but I slip on the mud. I yelp, falling on my stomach. I hold Tepig up, so he won't get hurt. "Pikachu!"

Tepig jumps out of my arms as I sit up. "Tepig! Tepig!"

"Tepig, you wanna help out?" I ask. He nods. "Alright! Tepig, use Ember!"

Tepig inhales deeply and shoots small flaming sparks out of his snout. They hit the contraption with Team Rocket, and the sack falls, Pikachu rolling out.

"Pikachu!" I yell. "No!" Skidding on my back, I catch the yellow mouse in a matter of seconds. I smile at him. "Pikachu!" I hug him tightly.

He smiles. "Pika pi!"

I take one more look at Team Rocket, who are flying away. "Team Rocket burns me up!" I turn to Tepig. "Tepig, thanks a lot. You helped save Pikachu!"

He smiles and wags his tail. "Tepig!"

Iris comes over to us and kneels down to Tepig. "I've gotta say, Tepig, you're a cutie!" She starts pulling on his face. "You're so pudgy and squishy! You know what? I think if like to catch you!"

I can't believe it. I found Tepig. I cleaned him up. I calmed him down. I gave him Pokémon food. He rested on my shoulder when he was sleepy. He helped take down Team Rocket with me. And Iris has the nerve to say_she_ wants to catch him?! After everything Tepig and I have done so far together?!

"Tepig." He shakes his head, pads over to me, sits next to me and wags his springy tail. "Tepig!" He smiles at me.

Don George laughs. "It appears Tepig has chosen Alice to be its Trainer. And after all its hardships, Tepig knows a great Trainer when it sees one. Raise Tepig well, Alice."

Smiling, I turn back to Tepig. "So Tepig, wanna come with me?"

"Tepig!" He nods.

"Awesome!" I stand up, a Poké Ball in my hand. "Alright! Poké Ball, let's go!" I throw it and it touches Tepig's head, sucking him in. It falls to the ground and shakes, finally clicking shut. "Alright! I caught a Tepig! So I think we should challenge the Striaton Gym with our new friend Tepig!" Remembering something, I turn to Pikachu. "Pikachu, remember what Team Rocket told me? So what we're you doing inside a box?!"

He starts speaking. "Pika pika! Pika pika. Pika pika! Pika! Pika pika pika! Pikachu! Pika pika! Pika Pikachu! Pika pika!"

I smile. "You do know I can't really understand you, right?" Realizing this, Pikachu blushes and nods sheepishly.


	5. Triple Leaders, Team Threats!

Triple Leaders, Team Threats!

Chapter 5

Triple Leaders, Team Threats

With Pikachu on my shoulder, I run into the sunlight and see the tall buildings and lights of the city beneath me. "I can see Striaton City!" I gasp.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers.

I smile at him. "My first Unova Gym battle. Let's give it all we've got! Let's go!"

I can't believe the day is finally here! I've waited so long for my first Unova Gym battle, and I can't wait any longer! I need to battle a Gym Leader right now!

As I run into the town, I find myself talking out loud. "Wonder who the Gym Leader is? Wonder what Pokémon we'll battle against? Oh man, I'm so stoked! This is gonna be great! Let's go!"

"Pikachu!" My buddy raises his little yellow hand in the air.

I suddenly feel hot breath on my neck. "So tell me, where's the Gym?"

"Huh?" Jumping, I turn to see Iris. She wasn't around when I woke up this morning, so I thought she'd left and given up traveling with me. "Whoa! Iris! The Gym...let's see...uh..." I bite my lip, looking around for some kind of sign to tell me where the Gym is.

Iris sighs, smiling. "All ready to go, but you don't know where you're going," she sings. "Just like a kid."

Axew comes out of her hair. "Yew yew yew!" He munches on an apple Iris holds out.

"Say! An Axew!" a calm, soothing, mellow and sweet voice says. I turn to see a formally dressed boy with green hair and green eyes coming over to us. He takes a look at Axew, seeming to admire him. "Soft skin as fresh as new grass, tusks like newly sprouted young shoots, and a future that's as bright and limitless as the sun. The perfect partner for a young lady who seems at one with nature!"

"Wow!" Iris smiles. "Thanks so much!"

"Axew!" the Dragon-type says.

I feel like an outsider right now. All of a sudden, this boy comes up to us and starts complimenting on Iris and Axew's partnership. I'm kinda feeling left out, since he didn't say anything about Pikachu. And he didn't seem to acknowledge me at all.

Pikachu wants to be noticed. "Pika?"

The boy's bright green eyes fall on my yellow mouse. "Huh?" A Pikachu?" His eyes glow like the sun is in them. "It's a Pikachu!" Gently and carefully, he lifts Pikachu off my shoulder and looks at him. "The first time I've seen one up close! Hello, there."

Pikachu seems to blush. "Pika pika!"

The boy gives Pikachu back to me and smiles at me. I wrap my arms around Pikachu tightly. "Say, you've got yourself a rare Pokémon, you know?"

For the first time, I take a good look at the boy. He doesn't seem my age—fifteen. He seems a little older, like seventeen. His green hair makes me think of how soft it might be, and his green eyes shine, the sunlight reflecting off of them. He seems like an angel, but doesn't seem to know that.

Wait...what in the world am I thinking?! I barely know this boy, much less his name, and already I'm staring to compare him to an angel?!

"Well," I start. "You see, we're from Kanto. My name's Alice. Pikachu's my special partner."

"Pikachu!" my buddy coos.

The boy smiles. "How do you do?" He bows slightly, just like a gentleman. "My name's Cilan, a Pokémon Connoisseur."

For an unknown reason, I feel unintelligent. I feel like I should know this term...connoisseur. I raise my eyebrow and tilt my head slightly. "Pokémon Connoisseur? What's that mean?"

"Pika?" Pikachu adds.

Iris rolls her eyes and bumps into me. "Of course. What a kid!"

"Axew yew!" her Axew says.

_So, I must be a kid because I don't know what a complex word outside the Kanto region means?!_

I don't want Iris to be here right now. I just want it to be me and Cilan, and maybe Pikachu. For some reason, I wanna get to know this boy, and learn all about him. I want me and him to be locked in a conversation no one could possibly break. Then, as we get to know each other, we can start a blossoming friendship, and maybe even a possible relationship...

Alright, I admit it. I'm starting to believe in love at first sight. But what makes him stand out?! His eyes? Him being strikingly handsome? His gentle voice?

"Not surprising at all," Cilan says calmly to answer my question. "It's a job that isn't really known outside of the Unova region." I smirk at Iris, who glares at me. "I use my knowledge and experience to judge the compatibility between Trainers and their Pokémon. I then help them form closer relationships. And that is the job of a Pokémon Connoisseur." He smiles.

I hug Pikachu tighter. "So what do you think about Pikachu and me? I'm sure you'll say we're perfect."

"Pikachu!" my buddy agrees.

Iris glares at me. "Why are you wasting your time with that?! Remember why we came here?!"

_If I remember correctly, Iris, I think you were the one who's following me around, and it was my idea to come here, not yours. And I don't want you to spoil my friendship with Cilan!_

"Oh, yeah," is all I can get out. "I guess you're right." I turn to Cilan; it takes a lot for me not to blush. "So, do you know where the Striation Gym is, Cilan? I'm here to challenge it!"

He nods. "I see. That explains it. I'll take you there. Follow me!" He winks at me, and I feel my heart melt.

Iris and I follow him through the city. The way there, I let Pikachu climb back up on my shoulder. He sits there, cooing and nuzzling my neck.

We finally reach a huge building. "Here we are."

I can't hold it in any longer. "Awesome! Yes!" I push on the doors. "Let's battle!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers for me.

Wait...

Instead of a huge battlefield, there are tables and chairs filled with people, girls mostly. This doesn't look like a Gym at all.

"Huh?" I voice my thoughts. "Hold on."

"Pika?" Pikachu wonders.

"This is the Striaton Gym?!" Iris sounds dumbfounded.

Suddenly, on my left, a red-headed waiter comes next to me. "Hi!" I jump in surprise. "Welcome!"

A blue-haired waiter comes on my right side. "Welcome."

I feel Cilan gently pushing on my back. "Please, make yourself at home!" He leads me to a table and sits me down on a comfortable chair. "Comfy?"

The red-headed boy comes to me. "So, are you all ready to order?"

The blue-haired one smiles at me. "May I start you off with something to drink?"

I shake my head quickly. I am thirsty, but that can wait. I need to find out what's going on, and where the real Gym is. "No thanks...I think."

They don't seem to take a hint. "Change your mind?" he asks. "I highly recommend the soda pop."

I make as many no gestures as I can possibly think of. "No thanks!" I even try to wave my hands for emphasis. "Not thirsty!"

"Alright," the red-headed one says. "We have a reasonably priced lunch menu."

I reject it. "Not hungry, either."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds, trying to get them to leave.

Through the swarm of questions they ask me, I overhear what two girls at a nearby table are saying. "Who's that new girl?" one of them asks.

"Not too cool," the other says. They both burst into giggles.

I can't take it anymore, so I scream in frustration, getting up from my seat. "I JUST WANNA HAVE A STRIATION CITY GYM BATTLE!" When I shut up, it's dead silent in the room. I gulp, knowing I've made a complete fool out of myself. _And you know you won't have any pathetic chance with Cilan after that stunt you pulled._

The girls jump from their seats, eyes sparkling. "Gym battle?!" They seem like fangirls. Ugh! They can be so annoying sometimes!

"That's what I said!" I growl. "I'm thinking this would be a good time to go. Come on, Pikachu." I head for the door.

He nods. "Pika pika," he agrees.

"Just a minute!" Cilan says. Suddenly, the lights go out, and I turn around. I notice Cilan and the two waiters who kept pestering me are walking in unison, and are all the same height. "Alright then, Alice!" Oh Arceus, I love how my name is pronounced on his tongue. He spins on his heel when a light falls on him, winking at me. "I'll grant your request!"

The girls in the room start squealing, and I feel my heart race with jealousy._Back off, girls. He's mine!_

A light falls on the red-headed boy. "So, you're a challenger." He turns around. "Then you'll receive a welcome as pleasant and hot as the noon day sun!" More squeals from the girls.

"No, I think we should be cool," the blue-haired boy says, spinning around as a light falls on him. "Like a refreshing glass of water...chilled, of course."

The girls squeal like they've just seen a movie star. I can't make out their words, but they act like the three boys are angels.

I cringe as one girl looks at Cilan like he's a piece of chocolate, sending him a smirk. She turns and catches my eye, smiling, but loses it once she sees me glaring. I might have just met this emerald-eyed boy in the street, but he's the one. I know it! And I won't let some fangirl take him from me without a fight!

"Pikachu," I say in a sick voice. "What are they talking about?!"

"Pika..." His voice trails off.

Cilan smiles. "This is the Striaton Gym."

"And the three of us..." the red-headed one starts.

The blue-haired one finishes. "...we're triplet brothers!"

"And we're the Gym Leaders!" they say in unison.

Iris gasps. "Three brothers? And all three of them are Gym Leaders?!"

"Now, it's..." Cilan starts.

"Show time!" all of them yell.

The wall behind them opens up and in a flash of blinding white light, a battlefield is shown. I gasp, admiring the setting.

"Whoa!" I gasp.

"So, now is the time to select your battle opponent," Cilan says to me.

I turn to him, my aqua blue eyes staring into his emerald ones. "I'm choosing?"

He nods. "That's correct! Me, or Chili—" He points to the red-head. "—or Cress." He motions to the blue-haired boy. "You can battle any one of us. Our rule states that if you're victorious against the one you choose, then you will earn the Trio Badge!"

My heart beats faster as Chili throws a Poké Ball. "Time to meet our Pokémon partners! Heat's on!" A small red Pokémon comes out.

"Here's the Pokémon I'll be using!" Cress says energetically. "Make a splash!" A blue Pokémon, much like the red one, reveals itself from its Poké Ball.

Last but not least, the emerald-eyed boy I've taking a liking to throws one. "It's my turn! Here we go! My partner!" A third Pokémon, a green one, turns out to be the cutest of them all.

I look at each of the creatures, taking out my Pokédex. "Wow! What kind of Pokémon are they?!"

**Pansear, the High Temp Pokémon. Pansear lives in caves near volcanoes. The temperature on the tuff of its head can reach six hundred degrees when it's angry. **

**Pansage, the Grass Monkey Pokémon. Pansage offers leaves on its head to Pokémon that have low energy. The leaves relieve stress. **

**Panpour, the Spray Pokémon. Panpour lived in forests long ago, but developed the body that makes it easy to live near water. It can store water in the tuffs on its head. **

I smile. "There's Pansear, a Fire-type, Pansage, a Grass-type, and finally Panpour, a Water-type. Any one of them would be a great opponent."

"Pikachu," my baby agrees.

_Who should I choose?_

Suddenly, the brothers appear at my side. "So, Alice, will your choice be to battle with me?" Cilan asks.

"Or me?" Chili asks. "It would be a distinct honor!"

"I must confess," Cress starts. "I wouldn't really mind if you were to battle me."

I step away from the brothers and turn to them all. "Well, the truth is, I wanna battle all three of you!"

The brothers gasp, eyes wide. I even hear Iris gasp.

"This is my first Gym battle since I came to the Unova region," I explain. "I wanna battle as many new Pokémon as I can." I seem to shrink under their gaze. "So, please say yes."

"Pikachu," my buddy pleads.

"Well well, now. We've never ever met a Trainer quite like you before." The emerald-eyed connoisseur turns to his brothers. "What should we do?"

Chili smiles. "Alice certainly has an interesting idea. I, for one, don't have any problems with it."

Cress speaks up. "Then, I suggest we come up with a brand new rule, stating that two wins at our Gym will earn Alice a Striaton Gym badge.

Their brother turns to me, his green eyes gazing into mine. "How does that sound to you?"

I smile. "Great! Thanks very much for the chance."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu thanks them.

"First, you'll battle with Chili, and that's me!" Chili yells determinedly.

I smile. "It's a real honor, Chili."

"Attention!" Cilan announces. "For our first battle today at the Striaton Gym, it's Alice, the challenger, versus Chili, the Gym Leader! Only one Pokémon each! And when either side is unable to battle, the match is over!"

"Alright! I'll be turning up the heat!" Chili shouts. "And showing you how to cook!"

Cilan flashes a quick smile towards me. "And...begin!"

I throw a Poké Ball. "Tepig! I choose you!"

He appears in a blue light. "Tepig!"

I know a Water-type like Oshawott would've been more effective against a Fire-type like Pansear, but I'm saving Oshawott until I really need him.

I smile to him. "See? It's a done deal. I said I'd use Tepig in my first battle at the first Gym in Unova!"

Chili smirks. "It takes courage to challenge a Gym Leader like me with a Fire-type Pokémon. But I'm all ready! Go!"

I smile, taking the first move. "Tepig, Tackle, now!"

Tepig charges at Pansear, and hits him, but Pansear just rolls and gets back up. Tepig will need to put more force on his attacks.

"Pansear, Fire Punch, go!" Chili commands.

Pansear's fist is bathed in red flames and he swings a punch at Tepig, which hits him hard. Tepig cries out, falling to the ground.

I gasp. "Quick Tepig! Get up!"

"Don't give them a chance to counter attack!" Chili yells. "Use Flamethrower!"

"Tepig, Ember!" I yelp.

Two streams of hot fire, one flames and one sparks, collide with each other. Of course, the stronger fire overpowers the weaker stream and aims at Tepig. Soon, Tepig is engulfed in hot flames.

"Oh no!" I yell. "Tepig!"

"Alright Pansear!" Chili shouts. "Use Dig!"

Pansear buries itself underground and disappears, Tepig looking around wildly for it. Suddenly, Pansear bursts out from under the ground, colliding with Tepig and making him cry out.

I cringe as Tepig shakes his head. He seems pretty beaten up. "Tepig! Pansear's Dig is really strong! Be careful!"

"Being careful won't help!" Chili yells. "Pansear, use Dig again!"

Once again, Pansear disappears into the ground. I smirk. "Now, run fast, Tepig!"

Tepig runs through the battlefield, and I can tell he must wanna know what I have planned. He'll figure it out eventually.

He just barely misses Pansear's attack from the ground, and runs to the side. "Use Dig one more time!" Chili yells.

"Grab onto Pansear and don't let it get away!" I yell to Tepig.

He nods and dives into the hole Pansear had made. Chili stares into the hole, fear in his red eyes. "What's going on?!" A second later, Pansear explodes from the ground, Tepig's jaws locked around its tail. "Shake Tepig off and send it flying!"

Pansear tries to get Tepig off it, but my fire pig holds on tightly. Suddenly, Tepig acts like he can read my mind and starts swinging Pansear around by its tail. Finally, Pansear manages to shake Tepig off.

"Tepig, quick!" I yell. "Get back up!" He does. "Now, Tepig, use Ember!" Tepig blows small sparks of fire towards Pansear, blinding it. "Alright! Use Tackle!" Tepig runs to Pansear and slams into it, both of them crushing into the wall behind Chili. Tepig gets up and smirks, looking at a fainted Pansear. He runs back to me and I rub his head affectionately. "Tepig, you were completely awesome."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds.

Tepig nuzzles into my hand, enjoying the affection and attention.

"Pansear is unable to battle!" Cilan announces. "Tepig wins! Therefor, the winner of the first match is the challenger, Alice!" He motions to me, smiling and winking. I feel my heart melt at his gesture.

Chili turns to me after returning Pansear to its Poké Ball. "Your Tepig's pretty impressive!"

I smile. "Thanks very much, Chili. Tepig's persistent." I return him to his Poké Ball. "So, let's keep it going, just like this!"

Cress steps up. "And now, you'll be facing Cress, and that's me."

I nod. "Alright! Ready when you are!"

"Time for our second battle!" Cilan yells. I notice fangirls and cheerleaders up on the railing, along with Iris. All but Iris stare at the emerald-eyed boy I like. I growl inside. "The battle between Alice and Cress is about to begin!" I feel a little sad I probably won't get to battle Cilan if I beat Cress.

I whisper to Pikachu. "I bet Cress is tough, but I totally believe in you, Pikachu!"

"Pikachu!" he cheers. He jumps off my shoulder and onto the battlefield, staring at Panpour.

"Two wins in a row, and that badge is ours!" I yell to Pikachu. "Ready?"

"Pika pika!" he answers.

Cilan smiles. "And...begin!"

"Alright!" I smile. "Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

Pikachu inhales and charges at Panpour. I can almost see the confidence in Pikachu's eyes.

"Panpour, Double Team, go!" Cress orders. Panpour splits up into more than ten copies, and Pikachu flies through one. "Now Panpour, use Scratch!" The copies lunge for Pikachu, and scratch him. Pikachu cries out in pain.

Tears start to form in my eyes, but I blink them away. I don't want Cilan to see me being weak during a battle. "Pikachu!"

"Pikachu's an Electric-type, of course, so there's definitely an advantage there," Cress says. "Even so, it's still no match for my Panpour! Alright Panpour, use Water Gun!"

Water blasts from Panpour's mouth and aims for Pikachu. "Dodge it, Pikachu!" He does. "Alright! Thunderbolt, go!" Pikachu charges up with electricity, ready to shock Panpour with it.

"Panpour, aim at Pikachu's feet!" Cress commands. Panpour fires a Water Gun right at Pikachu's feet, making him back up and lose his chance to attack. "I saw right through your attack pattern. Such an obvious move. Now, we'll take turns attacking and defending. Starting off with Water Gun!" Panpour fires a blast of liquid at Pikachu and hits him. "Use Scratch one more time!" Panpour uses Scratch on my little mouse, making him cry out.

Pikachu lays in front of me, shaking. I have to finish this now! "Come on, Pikachu! This battle isn't over yet! So, you've gotta get up!" He shakes and tries to.

"I think you'll agree. It seems we're close to the end," Cress says.

"No way!" I protest. "We're here to win! Come on, Pikachu!" Finally, he gets up, growling at Panpour. "Way to go! Alright! Volt Tackle!"

Surrounded by electricity and crackling lightning, Pikachu charges at Panpour. I have confidence in this move; no Pokémon has been able to dodge or deflect this attack.

"Volt Tackle," Cress says. "A move where a Pokémon causes damage to itself. Even so, our anti-Electric-type strategy is perfect. Alright Panpour! Mud Sport!"

Panpour pounds its paws into the mud, creating slippery and muddy water. Pikachu slips on the water and falls on his belly, losing another chance to attack.

"Oh, no!" I gasp. _Pikachu can lose!_

"Finish this up with Water Gun!" Cress orders.

A blast of water from Panpour's mouth surges forward and smacks Pikachu into the ground. "Pikachu!" I scream. But I know he can't fight anymore. "Pikachu..."

"Pikachu's unable to battle!" Cilan says. _Is that a hint of excitement in his voice? About battling me next?_"Panpour wins! So the winner of the second battle is the Gym Leader Cress!"

Once Pikachu regains consciousness, he crosses his arms and pouts. "Pika pika..."

"Pikachu, you did your best," I assure him.

He looks up at me, sadness in his eyes. "Pikachu.."

"You've truly demonstrated the deep bonds of friendship between Trainer and Pokémon," Cilan says, stepping forward. "We're very impressed. But we won't give up our badge that easily!"

I stand up, looking at him straight in the eye. "Just the way I want it! I'm gonna give it everything I've got to earn the Trio Badge!"

Cilan smiles. "Pansage, I'd like to engage them in a refined battle with plenty of flavored depths and tastes. Sound good?"

"Pansage!" his cute Pokémon agrees.

"This is it!" Chili announces. "The third battle with Alice and Cilan! And...begin!"

I grab a Poké Ball. "We'll win this for sure! Oshawott, I choose you!"

Oshawott appears, all confident. "Osha!"

Gasps and confused murmurs spread throughout the Gym. Even Cilan looks confused.

"Intentionally choosing a Pokémon that's at a disadvantage?" Cress asks. "That doesn't taste right!"

Oshawott looks at Pansage. "Osha? ...Wott!" He hides behind my leg. "Osha!"

I roll my eyes, rubbing the back of my head in embarrassment. "Oh man. Here we go."

"Pika," Pikachu sighs.

We push Oshawott back into the battlefield. "Come on, Oshawott. I need you to be strong. You're the only Pokémon who can get the job done. You're one of my strongest Pokémon. It's up to you! Don't you remember rescuing Pikachu and Axew when they were in trouble?"

"Pika!" Pikachu coos.

Oshawott smirks. "Oshawott."

"So show me that strength now!" I say. "Let's you and me win that Gym badge!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"Osha! Oshawott!" Oshawott looks at Pansage, determination in his eyes.

Cilan smiles at me. "You have the first attack. From anywhere you'd like."_What a gentleman. _

"Oshawott, Tackle, go!" I yell. Oshawott runs towards Pansage, ready to slam his body into Pansage's.

Cilan closes his eyes. "Pansage...dodge it." He doesn't exactly sound energized. Pansage easily dodges Oshawott's attack. "Pansage, Bullet Seed!"

Pansage lets seeds shoot from his mouth, and they aim at Oshawott. Oshawott runs from them, crying out.

"Oshawott!" I yelp. My face hot with embarrassment, I run my hand down it. _What a perfect way to show Cilan how I can battle!_

The next words that come out of Cilan's mouth are horrifying to me. "Looks like you two could grow up a bit. You know...mature."

My eyes widen, them turn into dark blue slits. Dangerous slits, which mean danger. "What did you say?!"

How can he call me a kid?! I'm kinda used to it from Iris, but I feel totally worse hearing it come from Cilan.

"You want proof?" he asks. "I'll show you proof! Pansage, get close to Oshawott!" Pansage hovers over Oshawott. "And now use Bite!" Pansage's jaws clamp down on Oshawott's head, and the small sea otter runs around the battlefield in fear. Finally, Pansage lets go of Oshawott.

I growl, wanting to prove Cilan he's wrong. "Oshawott, use Water Gun!" Oshawott shoots water from his mouth, but Pansage jumps on the rocks, dodging each blast. "You've gotta aim better, Oshawott!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells encouragingly.

Oshawott blasts at Pansage, causing him to jump too high to escape. "Okay! One more time!" Without hesitation, Oshawott shoots at Pansage, landing a critical hit on the green Pokémon. "Yes! That was a great attack!" I praise him.

"Pikachu!" my buddy cheers for Oshawott.

Cilan smiles at me. "New flavors...like a secret ingredient. But you'll never defeat me with simple tastes like that! Pansage, I think it's time to convert the power of the sun!" In a flash, Pansage's paws rise up to its head, where sunlight sparkles. A beam of light gathers at the tuff on its head. "Pansage, use Solar Beam, now!" Pansage fires the beam of light straight at Oshawott.

I can't move. I want to tear my eyes away from the scene, but I can't. I've gotta be strong. I can't let Oshawott suffer alone. "Oshawott!"


	6. Dreams By the Yard Full!

Dreams by the Yard Full!

Chapter 6

Dreams by the Yard Full

Snapping out of my horror-stricken daze, I call out to Oshawott. He won't lose the battle now! "Oshawott! Deflect it!"

At the last minute, Oshawott grabs his scalchop from his belly and blocks the Solar Beam attack with it. It bounces off, going right through the window.

Everyone gasps in amazement, while I cheer. "Oshawott, that was amazing!"

"Now, that was a truly fascinating defense move!" Cilan compliments. "Oshawott deflected our Solar Beam with its scalchop. I've seen many an Oshawott in my time, but that was a first!"

I smile, feeling warmed by his praise. "You just wait. You'll see my awesome Oshawott's a cut above the rest!"

He smiles. "Impressive. Then there's no holding back! Alright Pansage. Bullet Seed!"

"Quick!" Before Pansage can attack, I yell to Oshawott. "Block it with your scalchop!" With ease, Oshawott blocks the attacks with his scalchop. "Yes! Now Razor Shell!" But instead of staying to the ground, Oshawott jumps up, ready to strike.

Cilan notices this. "Use Bullet Seed once more!" Pansage spits seeds at the sea otter, and knocks him down, him losing his scalchop.

I gasp. "Oshawott! Get your scalchop! Hurry!" Oshawott runs towards his scalchop.

"Use Bullet Seed!" Cilan yells to Pansage.

Thanks to the surge of seeds separating Oshawott and his scalchop, Oshawott seems terrified. Suddenly, a small seed smacks him in the side of the head. I cringe at how much that's gotta hurt. "Oshawott!"

"Hm. Alright, let's begin," Cilan starts. "The time for the battle to be served is here!" The girls on the squeal loudly. "I'm afraid you and Oshawott aren't quite as robust as I'd hoped you'd be."

I blink. "...Huh?" I have no clue on what he means.

"Your battle style has no spice, and your attacks are rather bland." He gives me an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but what a letdown."

I flash him a glare. "A letdown?!"

"Well, look at Oshawott," he says.

I do, and see him about to give up. "Come on, Oshawott!"

"Now, let's compare," he says. "Just look at my Pansage. Its crisp attacks give off a fragrance aroma of a freshly mowed lawn. The star of the battlefield! Dare I say it, Pansage is the most brilliant battler ever! And the fact that you challenged my Grass-type with a Water-type tells me you're far from refined. Your taste buds don't appreciate the gourmet things in life."

I glare at him. "There's more to a Pokémon battle then what type your Pokémon is, so don't sell my Oshawott short!"

He smiles slightly. "Now you sound desperate. With that kind of sour attitude, you'll just spoil the flavor of Oshawott's battle."

"Yeah?!" I challenge. "We'll see about that! Oshawott, use Water Gun and aim it at that wall!" He looks at me, uneasiness in his eyes. "Just trust me on this one!" He nods and fires water at the wall I point to. It bounces off, through the rocks, and hits the scalchop on the ground, causing it to fly.

Cilan stares in amazement. "Well well, you do have some surprising flavors!"

"Catch it, Oshawott, and then use Razor Shell!" He does, and slashes the scalchop across Pansage. "That was great, Oshawott!" I praise.

"Wow!" Cilan exclaims. "It was great! Alright then, Pansage! Use Bite!"

"Now, use Razor Shell!" I yell.

Our two Pokémon attack each other, and seem to go right through one another. They stand, not moving an inch, keeping their poses. Until Pansage breaks it and collapses, fainted.

Gasps from the fangirls erupt, and I shoot them a smirk. One of them glares at me, and if looks could kill, I swear I would already be in the Earth's inner core.

"Pansage is unable to battle!" Chili announces. "Oshawott wins! And, with two wins, the victor is Alice, the challenger!"

I can't believe it! I jump up, failing to contain my excitement. "Yeah!"

"Pikachu!" My buddy jumps up along with me.

With Tepig and Oshawott outside their Poké Balls with Pikachu, they stare at me, pride in their eyes.

Cress hands me a small box, which contains a small badge. "Here, Alice. This is for you."

"This badge proves you beat the Striaton Gym!" Chili says.

"It's called the Trio Badge," Cilan adds.

I smile and take the small badge. "Thanks. I got the Trio Badge!" I do my signature Gym badge pose. "My first in the Unova region!" My Pokémon cheer. Only seven more to go! I turn to Iris, who's perched on the railing. "What did you think, Iris? I won, ya know."

"You didn't have to battle all three Gym Leaders," she points out. "Do you have the foggiest idea how uncool it would've looked if you'd been defeated after you chose to make it more difficult?!"

I bite my lip from retorting sharply at her. _I don't see her struggling for Gym badges! _"Man, oh man. You could've just said something nice, you know."

She smirks. "You're very lucky that even though your Pokémon had a type disadvantage, you still came through. Maybe you should forget luck, and put a little thought into strategy and better moves."

I look at my Pokémon, who don't seem full of pride anymore. They seem sad. I growl. Iris has no right to make my Pokémon feel like this! They gave it everything they had! "You think so?!" I yell, turning back to her. "Then I think I'll battle you next!"

Uneasiness flashes through her face. "Uh...that's fine with me."

Cilan comes up next to me. "Now now, save it for later. Although the combination of the two of you does conjure up a certain bouquet."

I raise my eyebrow and tilt my head. "Bouquet?"

"It means aroma!" Iris shouts. "Don't you know anything at all?! What a kid. We're out of here, Axew."

"Hold on," Cilan says. "I thought the two of you were traveling together."

Iris glares at us. "No, we're not!" She turns away. "Good job, Alice. See ya!"

I stare back after her and glare. Well, I guess I just lost a traveling partner. Whatever. I can get another one just as easy. Hopefully...

In the Pokémon Center, I place Oshawott's and Tepig's Poké Balls in the small rack. Pikachu jumps down next to it. "'Kay," I say. "Ready, please."

Nurse Joy comes up. "Hi!"

I recognize her from somewhere, don't I? "We met in Accumula Town, didn't we?"

"Huh?" She smiles. "Oh, of course. You must be talking about my younger sister." She shows me a picture of many nurses who all look alike. "See?" She points to one. "She's the Accumula Town nurse, and that's me." She points to herself in the picture.

I smile, nervous sweat beading on my head. "Yeah, right. You and all your sisters look alike."

She smiles. "Thank you."

"Pikachu!" the yellow mouse greets her.

Her eyes widen. "How unusual to see a Pikachu. Gym battle today?"

"Already completed," a voice from behind me says. "She's quite strong."

I turn to see Cilan, him smiling at me. "Hey, Cilan. What's up?"

"Hi, Alice," he says. "I'd like to chat with you, if you don't mind."

Once we sit down, waiting for my Pokémon to come out, he sits across from me at one of the booths in the Pokémon Center.

"Our battle today was a fruitful one," he says. "What struck me were the amazing pairing possibilities between Trainer and Pokémon."

I smile nervously. "Ah, come on." It's already too much to fangirl over, since he came to see me, but now he's complimenting me!

"There are things I'd like to ask you for a future reference," he continues. "As a Pokémon Connoisseur, of course."

I smile. "Sure! Fire away, Cilan." Suddenly, I'm met with a small notepad in my face.

"So, how do you bring out a Pokémon's hidden zest in nature like you do?" he asks. "Also, would you fill me in on that secret recipe of yours that allows you to turn a type disadvantage into a win? Please, Alice! I'm dying to know!"

I realize he's leaning over the table that separates us to get closer to me. Better yet, my back's pressed against my seat, so there's no way to escape.

"Uh..." I can't concentrate with his face being so close to mine. "Guess I never really thought about it."

Nurse Joy's voice on the loudspeaker startles me. "Excuse me, Alice. Your Pokémon have made a full recovery!"

With a nervous smile at Cilan, I start to walk towards the front counter. "Coming!" When I get there, a pink Pokémon rolls out a cart with my two Poké Balls and Pikachu. I smile. "Pikachu!" I take my two Poké Balls.

"Pika pi!" he says.

The pink Pokémon smiles warmly at me. "Audino."

"Awesome!" I smile. "Who's that Pokémon?"

"It's an Audino," Cilan says, coming up behind me and standing next next to me, making sure our arms are touching. "Audino is Nurse Joy's assistant here at the Pokémon Center."

I smile. "Alright!" I scan it with my Pokédex.

**Audino, the Hearing Pokémon. Audino can assess a Pokémon's overall physical condition and mood using its ears. **

Suddenly, Iris runs into the room. "Nurse Joy, help! Please!"

"Iris!" I gasp.

"What's the matter?" Joy asks. "Oh, my. Your Axew!" I notice Axew's covered in pink light.

"Axew started to glow as soon as this pink light hit it from the sky!" Iris explains.

My eyes widen. "Whoa. Pink light?"

She nods. "Yeah. And whatever it is, there's a lot more outside!"

Suddenly, a young woman in a lab coat runs into the Pokémon Center, a pink Pokémon floating at her side. She gasps once she sees Axew. "Just as I feared!" She turns to the pink Pokémon. "Munna, please wake up Axew. Quickly!"

The Pokémon nods and opens its mouth. The pink light from Axew's body is sucked up by the pink one's mouth. I raise my Pokédex. "Who's that Pokémon?"

**Munna, the Dream Eater Pokémon. Munna can eat the dreams of people and Pokémon alike, and then project those dreams by emitting Dream Mist from its body. **

Munna puffs out a cloud that forms into a picture of Axew, running through a field.

"Wow," I breathe.

"What's that?" Iris asks.

"That's the dream Axew was having," the woman answers.

Iris gasps. "Axew!" The little Dragon-type seems to be awake.

The picture changes to Axew turning into a larger Dragon-type Pokémon. "It evolved?" I ask.

"You're right," Iris says. "It evolved into Fraxure." Fraxure evolves into a much larger Pokémon then. "That's Haxorus, Axew's final evolutionary form." She turns to Axew in her arms. "So, you were having a dream about evolving?"

The Pokémon nods. "Axew!"

The woman with the Munna speaks. "Hi, everybody. I'm Dr. Fennel, a scientist specializing in researching dreams and other mysterious powers, which so many Pokémon possess."

Once all four of us—me, Cilan, Fennel and Iris—are outside, we see the entire city is covered in pink mist.

"Wow," I whisper.

"Those pink lights must be what made Axew fall asleep," Iris says. Axew cries in fear, hiding in her hair.

Fennel speaks. "All of this must've been created by Musharna's Dream Mist."

I turn to her. "Musharna?"

"Musharna evolves from Munna," Cilan answers for me. I give him a smile.

"Correct," Fennel says.

I take out my Pokédex and search Musharna.

**Musharna, the Drowsing Pokémon, and the evolved form of Munna. The mist from its forehead takes the form of things present in the dreams it has eaten. **

"Musharna eats dreams just as Munna does, and can then project those dreams off to its Dream Mist," Fennel explains.

Suddenly, a police car pulls up to us, and another woman comes out. "Attention!"

Cilan's eyes widen. "Officer Jenny!"

She turns to me. "You must return your Pokémon to their Poké Balls immediately."

"Huh?" I ask.

"Pokémon are falling asleep all over the city after being exposed to a mysterious pink light," she explains. "You must hurry!"

I frown. "Thing is, my Pikachu doesn't like being in his Poké Ball one bit."

Iris and Cilan gasp, looking at me. "Huh?!"

"Wow!" Iris says. "I had no idea!"

Fennel looks at me. "If I may?" She takes off my hat and puts it on Pikachu's head, protecting him from the falling mist. "That should work...for now."

"So, will Munna be alright?" Cilan asks.

Fennel nods. "Yes. Munna and the lights are attracted to each other. I think the key to solving this mystery will be found in the Dream Yard."

My eyes widen. "What's the Dream Yard?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asks.

When we're all in the police car, Jenny and Fennel in the front, me, Cilan and Iris in the back. I sit in the middle between Iris and Cilan, which is alright with me.

Cilan explains the Dream Yard to me. "The Dream Yard's an abandoned site located right outside of the city. Everybody was talking about a huge explosion that occurred there a few years back."

"That's right," Fennel says. "It's what's left of the Pokémon Energy Research Facility. A place to discover a way to utilize Musharna's Dream Mist. And that is, turn it into a form of energy people could benefit from. And I was one of the scientists in the project."

"Turning dreams into energy?" I ask.

Fennel continues. "Once our research had been finalized, we would've created the ultimate Clean Energy. After all, its source would've been nothing but the dreams of people and Pokémon. But then..." Her voice trails off.

"Then what?" I press. This story's getting good and interesting. "What happened?"

"People came, trying to gain control of this new energy," she replies sadly. "And since their ambitions were inside dreams, Musharna absorbed their greedy dreams, which became so overwhelming that Musharna could no longer process them. Musharna disappeared, and the research facility was destroyed."

I feel sad. This poor, poor Musharna did nothing at all, and was forced to destroy a whole research facility because of people's ambitions.

"And the research?" Jenny asks.

Fennel looks down, closing her eyes. "I have up. With Musharna missing, I became fed up with it all and left the city. Munna and I return now, because Munna senses something. And with the discovery of pink lights, Musharna must be here. Somewhere! I know it."

"Huh?" Jenny stares ahead. "What's that?" She motions to a glowing pink light.

We drive to the pink light and get out of the car, seeing three suspicious figures. "Alright," Jenny growls. "What are you three doing here?!"

"We're searching for any residual traces of dreams," one says.

Fennel speaks up after a moment of silence. "I think that machine is elevating the energy levels left here!"

"Very good," another figure says.

"Just exactly who are you, anyway?" Jenny asks.

"Exact questions are good indeed," the girl says.

"The answer to come as we feel the need," the boy says. The overcoats reveal them to be Jessie and James.

Iris groans. "Oh, not those guys again!"

_Bringing the white light of evil into the future. _

_And thrusting the hammer of justice on the black universe._

_Carving our names in the rock of eternity!_

_The fiery destroyer, Jessie!_

_And, with thunderous emotion, I'm James!_

_Wisest of the wise: I'm Meowth!_

_And now, we call all to gather under the name of Team Rocket!_

"Team Rocket?!" Jenny yells. "What's a Kanto region based organization doing in Unova?!"

"Setting in motion, our takeover of Unova, of course," Jessie answers, smirking.

"The sleeping energy lingering here at the Dream Yard will be fully awakened at the hands of Team Rocket!" James adds.

"And we won't let sleepwalking stand in our way!" Meowth says.

Fennel looks devastated. "I can't believe there are people who still want to take advantage of our dreams."

Cilan speaks up. "Dr. Fennel, is it possible Musharna was trying to warn you about all of this through Munna?" I stare at him. He's real smart.

"I hadn't thought of that," Fennel admits.

"Munna! Munna!" The pink Pokémon nods.

Fennel turns to Munna. "Munna? Huh?"

Suddenly, the ground rumbles, and bolts of pink lightning shoot out. I stare in amazement.

"What's this?!" Meowth demands.

A strained, high-pitched cry is heard. Fennel gasps. "I think that's Musharna's cry!"

Jessie's eyebrow raises up. "Musharna?"

"Musharna is the Pokémon that helped with the experiments in the laboratory," James answers.

Meowth smirks. "Hey. Then that means we could gather up the remaining energy, and we could also catch the Pokémon that's the source of that energy at the same time!"

Fennel starts to call out to Musharna. "Musharna! Where are you?!"

"Munna!" Munna cries out.

I help out. "C'mon! Answer us, Musharna!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells.

"Musharna!" Cilan yells out.

Iris yells, too. "Musharna!"

"Axew yew!" Axew yelps.

Suddenly, a fold in the air opens up and glows with a luminous light. Fennel gasps, tears in her eyes. "It's Musharna!"

"Munna!" the pink creature yells.

The fold reveals a larger version of Munna, but slightly different. "Musharna!" Fennel cries. She runs over to the Pokémon, but is almost shot with a laser. She yelps.

"Dr. Fennel!" I yell. I run over to her.

"Musharna!" she cries. More lasers are fired at us.

"We'll be taking possession of Musharna, thank you," James growls. One of their contraptions cages Musharna.

"No!" Fennel screams. "Musharna!"

"Musharna!" I yell.

Fennel turns to Team Rocket. "Stop what you're doing! Please!"

Jessie smirks. "Musharna's now a proud member of Team Rocket."

"A lifetime member," James adds.

I take my hat off of Pikachu. "Pikachu, let's help out Musharna! Use Volt Tackle!"

Pikachu clouds himself in electricity and charges at the machine. While it blasts at Pikachu, the Pokémon dodges them easily.

"Alright, Munna," Fennel says. "Use Psychic!" The machine crumples, and Pikachu smashes into it, destroying it and freeing Musharna.

"Let's go!" I yell.

"No, you don't!" Jessie yells. "Woobat, use Gust!" Her Woobat flaps its wings, making it hard to see.

When we look, Team Rocket is gone.

"They're gone!" Cilan gasps.

"They got away again!" Iris growls.

I turn to them. "It's okay. I mean, Dr. Fennel and Musharna are back together." I watch as the doctor embraces the Pokémon.

"Oh, Musharna," she murmurs. "I'm so sorry I didn't feel you're presence for such a long time."

The Pokémon smiles. "Musharna!"

"From now on, we'll never be apart." She turns to me. "I can't thank you enough, Alice."

I blush with embarrassment. "I'm really happy for you, doctor."

"Pika!" Pikachu adds, smiling.

"Oh, what a beautiful reunion to behold!" Cilan exclaims. "Dr. Fennel and Musharna's twin hearts are reunited once again! Such exquisite harmony!" Wow. _He does have a way with words. _

Jenny smiles. "Well, I would say this case is closed!"

"You're going on a journey?!" Chili asks.

"You're serious?" Cress questions.

Their emerald-eyed brother gives them a warm smile. "I'm serious as can be. After Alice and I had our battle, our talks convinced me I just couldn't resist the urge anymore! It's so clear. There's more to the pairing of Pokémon and Trainer than I'd originally thought. Much more! I know this will help me become an even better Pokémon Connoisseur!"

"In that case, we won't stop you," Chili says.

"We want you to be the best Pokémon Connoisseur," Cress says.

"Thank you both," their brother says, shaking hands with them.

"You just leave the Gym to us!" Chili assures him.

Cress nods. "Yes. And best wishes on your journey, Cilan."

Cilan and I walk towards the exit of the city. I feel sad, since this'll be the last time we'll see each other.

I turn to him. "Cilan, so where are you headed?"

He smiles at me. "Wherever you're headed!" My eyes widen. "I wanna go on your journey with you! Plus, remember, you haven't answered all my questions yet!"

"Huh?" He wants to come along with me?! I can't believe it! _This is a sign he likes me!_

Pikachu smiles. "Pika!"

"If we travel together, I have no doubt the journey will be full of flavor!" He winks at me.

I smile at him. "Yeah! Okay! Then let's travel together!" I can't believe it!

"Pika pika!" I can tell Pikachu approves.

He takes out a small device that looks like an electronic map. "Let's see where the next Gym will be. Looks like...Nacrene City. That's the Nacrene Gym."

I can feel my heart pounding faster any minute. "Okay!" My next Gym battle seems only a few miles away.

"By the way, where's Iris?" he asks me.

I look around, realizing she must've left. "Don't know."

"Boo!"

I yelp, scared of the sudden voice behind me. I turn to see Iris, hanging upside down from a tree. She chuckles as she swings down. "Did I scare you?" There's amusement in her question.

I glare at her. "Of course you did!"

"Why don't all three of us go together?" Cilan suggests. "It seems to me the way we compliment each other as a winning team makes for a great recipe!"

I nod. "Think so, Cilan? Yeah! That's a great idea!"

Iris blinks. "Oh. Now you're Miss Decision Maker?"

I smile. "Let's make our dreams come true together! C'mon! I wanna become a Pokémon Master. Cilan wants to be the world's greatest Pokémon Connoisseur. And then you..." My voice trails off. "What did you wanna be again?"

Iris smiles. "It's a secret!"

"Axew! Axew!" Axew cheers. With that, Iris runs ahead, laughing.

"Huh?" Cilan and I look at each other and smile, trying to catch up to her.

_Now, I know my journey truly begins! _


	7. Snivy Plays Hard to Catch!

Snivy Plays Hard to Catch!

Chapter 7

Snivy Plays Hard to Catch!

Once the hot afternoon sun hits me and my two traveling partners—Iris and Cilan—I feel a rumble in my stomach. I remember I haven't eaten any food since last night, and skipped breakfast this morning because I was so happy about moving onto the next Gym with Cilan and Iris.

I put my hand on my stomach and feel it quiver with hunger. "Man, I need food, and quick."

"Pika." Even my buddy understands. I bet he's hungry, too.

Iris turns to me. "So, why don't we stop here for lunch?"

"Yeah!" I say. "Good idea."

"Okay." She smiles. "Wait here. I'll get things ready." She jumps onto a ledge and disappears into the woods, leaving me and Cilan alone.

After a while, with Cilan and I sit at a stump, which will serve as a table. He sits across from me, his eyes burning into mine.

I swallow a hard lump in my throat and turn away, pretending to look at Pikachu. I don't know why, but I feel there's going to be some problems with Cilan traveling with me.

"Alright, guys!" Iris calls as she comes over with a basket. "We're all set! Fresh as fresh can be! Dig in!" She places the basket down, revealing it's full with berries.

I smile. "Check it out! Wow, does that look good!"

"Eat all you want," Iris says.

"Even though it is just a bunch of fruit..." Cilan mutters to himself.

Iris and I each grab a berry. "Okay lunch, here we come!"

"Hold on, just a minute!" Cilan says.

I stop. "Huh?"

Iris and I sit at a table while Cilan stands over some kind of counter, cooking something. I had no idea he could cook! But, I guess it's pretty obvious, since he ran a restaurant with his two brothers.

I feel my stomach growling like a Growlithe. "Is it ready? I'm starving."

He comes over with two plates and sets them on the table. "Sorry for the wait. Here you go."

I can tell he's still talking, but I pay no attention. My attention is fixed on the food. It looks really good. "Wow! Smells awesome!" I take one from the plate of muffins. "Now, for the taste test." I raise it to my lips and take a bite. My eyes widen. It's like I've just stepped into Flavor Heaven. "Yummy!"

Pikachu takes one. "Pika." He takes a bite. "Pikachu!"

Iris frown. "Only a kid would make such a big deal about this." She takes a muffin. "Truth is, I usually only eat fresh fruit." She takes a small bite, and her face changes from doubt to delight.

"And how is it?" Cilan asks her.

"You know, Cilan, you're a master chef," she compliments.

He smiles. "I'm so happy you're enjoying it."

The way they're smiling at each other...it breaks my heart. Iris must have secret feelings for Cilan, and Cilan must have some feelings for Iris. This would suck, if they became a couple, with me as a third wheel. Then I'd never get to know or experience a relationship.

"Wow!" Iris gasps as she eats more of the muffin. "If I could eat delicious food like this every single day, maybe traveling with you two won't be so bad."

I force a smile. "Yeah! She's right, there." I realize I'm almost done with my muffin, but my stomach's not yet satisfied.

Cilan turns to me. "Alice, you're more than welcome to have seconds if you're still hungry."

_Oh, what a gentleman..._

I put the last piece of muffin in my mouth and get up, Pikachu hopping onto my shoulder. "Sounds good to me!" I go over to the other table where Cilan was cooking earlier, but don't see any more food. I look around the table, but don't see anything. "Cilan, excuse me. I...uh...I don't see any seconds here."

"Pikachu," my buddy whimpers. I can tell he's still hungry.

Cilan comes over to me and Iris, raising his eyebrow. "Hm...that doesn't make sense. There was plenty of food over here a second ago. I'm sure of it."

"That's so weird," Iris comments. "Then what in the world could've happened to it?"

Axew sticks his head out of her hair. "Axew?" Suddenly, a rustling sound in the bushes is heard. "Huh? There's something moving in the grass over there!"

"Huh?" Sure enough, I see the grass moving.

Soon, I'm crawling on my hands and knees in the tall grass, trying to find the cause of the rustling. Eventually, I find a green snake-like Pokémon. "Hey, that's a Snivy! It's one of the starter Pokémon in the Unova region." I take out a Poké Ball. "Wow. And I'm gonna catch it now! Awesome! Alright, go, Poké Ball!"

I throw it and it taps Snivy's head, sucking it in. The ball closes shut and drops to the ground.

I hear Iris gasp. "Did you get it?!"

I smirk. "I sure did!"

Sadly, the Poké Ball bursts open and Snivy escapes, running into the tall grass.

Iris and Cilan run to me. "If Snivy went into your Poké Ball like that, then it must be a wild Pokémon!"

"Yeah," Cilan says. "She's right."

I smile, putting a hand on my hip. "Snivy's a Grass-type. I wanna catch that Pokémon for sure! 'Kay, Snivy! I'm coming!" I run after it. "You're gonna be my Pokémon, no doubt!"

Finally, I see the small Snivy, munching on a berry. "There you are." I whisper to Pikachu, who rests on my shoulder. "Okay Pikachu. Quick Attack, let's go."

Pikachu nods and jumps off my shoulder. He charges at Snivy with full speed, but Snivy sees this and swiftly dodges Pikachu's attack.

I gasp. "It dodged!"

"Alice," Cilan starts. "Snivy are really smart and speedy Pokémon, not easy to catch."

Snivy eats the last of the berry and shoots me an amused glance, and a smirk.

"Uh...looks like you're being made fun of," Iris says.

I glare. "What?! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

But before Pikachu can shock the Snivy, Snivy turns around, blinks and smiles, hearts erupting from it and surrounding Pikachu. They fly around Pikachu and sink in him. He suddenly smiles, hearts in his eyes as he sways back and forth on his back paws.

I raise my eyebrow. "Hey, what's up, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu got hit by Snivy's Attract," Iris answers.

I turn to her, tilting my head. "Huh?"

"Attract—a move that causes infatuation in Pokémon of the opposite gender," Cilan explains.

Iris crosses her arms. "Oh, boy. Alice, you don't even know that?! What a kid!" I give her a glare she won't forget in a hurry. She glares back at me. "Okay. It worked on Pikachu, so Snivy has to be a girl."

Suddenly, two vines snake out of Snivy's neck and lunge for Pikachu. They smack him, causing him to cry out in pure pain.

I gasp. "Pikachu!" I step between him and the vines, turning my back on the vines and wrapping my arms around Pikachu to protect him. The vines lash at my back, and I grit my teeth to keep from crying out. I whimper as I feel something dribble down my back. It must be some blood. I open my closed eyes and look at Pikachu. "Are you okay, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu!" he cries.

I take him in my arms and turn to see Snivy's disappeared. "Snivy got away!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu whimpers.

"Incredible," Cilan whispers. "Snivy's moves are really high leveled."

"I wonder if it abandoned its Trainer!" Iris says.

I turn to them. "Huh? What does that mean?"

"Cilan said Snivy are intelligent," Iris explains. "I heard if they feel they have a really bad Trainer, they'll leave them."

Cilan nods. "Yeah. I wouldn't be surprised if this Snivy did just that."

I smile. "Well, if that's true, I want Snivy more than ever! There's no doubt I'm gonna catch that Snivy now!"

"Pika!" Pikachu hops down onto the ground.

Iris glares. "Can't the two of you just calm down?!"

"Iris, this is no time for calming down," I say. I throw Pidove's Poké Ball. "Pidove, go and find Snivy!"

While following Pidove, I see it circling in the air, cooing. I smile, knowing Snivy's been found.

"Awesome!" I yell. "Thanks for finding Snivy! Show us where!" Pidove coos. "Won't be long now, Snivy." I turn to my yellow mouse. "'Kay, Pikachu. Let's step on it!" We take the lead and keep running.

I see Snivy on top of a small mountain of rocks. "Snivy! I wanna battle you again!"

"Pikachu!" My buddy smiles.

Suddenly, in a flash, Oshawott bursts from his Poké Ball. He smiles and seems to 'beg' to battle Snivy.

I raise my eyebrow. "Hold on. You wanna battle Snivy this time?"

"Oshawott!" he cheers.

I smile. "Okay! Go for it, Oshawott!" We start to climb the mountain of rocks to get to Snivy. I hear a rumble and look up to see a group of rocks tumbling down towards us. I shriek, grabbing Pikachu and Oshawott and dodging behind a boulder while the rocks tumble past us. Putting Oshawott on my head and Pikachu on my shoulder, I continue to climb up. "We're not giving up that easily!" I finally climb onto the top, where Snivy awaits for us. Oshawott and Pikachu jump onto the ground and I pant, trying to catch my breath. "I'm catching you this time! Just watch! Now Oshawott, Water Gun, go!"

Oshawott releases a burst of cold water from his mouth, aiming for Snivy, but she dodges, a small drop of water sprinkling on her nose. She wipes it away, glaring at Oshawott.

"Come on!" Iris suddenly shouts. "Alice, don't you know a Water-type's a disadvantage against a Grass-type?!"

"Axew yew yew!" Axew yells at me.

I whip around to face her. "Hey! Not so loud! Of course I know that, Iris!"

I turn away, my attention focused on Snivy, but that doesn't mean I can't hear Cilan's next words. "Alice sure is an interesting girl. It must be Oshawott's enthusiasm that convinced her."

_He said I'm interesting! I can't believe it!_

"Well, if you ask me, I think she isn't thinking things through," Iris growls.

_No one asked you, Iris. But who cares?! Cilan said I'm interesting!_

I stare at Snivy and Oshawott, waiting for Snivy to attack. She does, using Vine Whip.

"Oshawott, dodge it! Quick!" I yell. He blocks the vines with his small scalchop. "Way to go! Now, use Razor Shell!"

Suddenly, Snivy blinks and more hearts surround Oshawott. His eyes are replaced with pink hearts, and he stares lovingly at Snivy.

"Man, not Attract again!" I groan. Snivy uses Vine Whip again, smacking Oshawott with the vines. I gasp. "Oshawott! No! Oshawott, return!" He returns to his Poké Ball, still love-struck. Snivy smirks and runs away. "Snivy! Come back here!" I run after her.

"Pika!" Pikachu yells.

Once we're in the forest, I yell up to Pidove. "Alright, Pidove! Keep following Snivy!"

"Pidove!" it calls to me.

I see Snivy jump through the trees and turn to Pikachu, a plan forming in my head. "Alright. Hop on board, Pikachu." He jumps onto my shoulder, holding on tightly. Jumping, I grab onto one of the vines and swing on it, traveling by vines like I've seen Iris do plenty of times. "Snivy is all mine!"

I continue swinging on the vines and following Snivy until she comes to a lake and stops. I growl to myself.

"Snivy! Wait up!" Suddenly, the vine I'm holding breaks in half, and I fall down onto a huge lily pad in the lake. Snivy watches me from the other side. "That was kinda scary." I turn to my buddy. "Pikachu, are you okay?"

"Pika," he says, nodding.

I notice the water around us is starting to come onto the lily pad. "Huh?" The lily pad's sinking! "Uh-oh! We're starting to sink! Pikachu, quick! Get on my shoulder!" If I have to sink and die, I want Pikachu to live.

"Pikachu!" He hops onto my shoulder.

In less than two minutes, I'm up to my waist in water. I whimper as the water laps hungrily at my body. I turn to Pikachu. "It's no good! Pikachu, on top of my head!"

He whimpers. "Pika?"

I force a smile. "Just move. It'll be alright."

"Pikachu..." He climbs up onto my head, whimpering.

Suddenly, a vine is thrown next to me in the water. I turn to see Iris and Cilan, holding the other end. "Hurry, Alice! Grab onto this!" Iris yells.

I smile, thankful they're here. "That's great! Thanks a lot, you two!" I grab onto my end of the vine.

"Alice, we're going to pull you out!" Cilan says.

"You hang on tight, Alice!" Iris yells to me. Her and Cilan start pulling on the vine, and I'm pulled a little closer to the land. "Just a little bit more!" A little bit closer. Soon, I'm pulled out completely.

I pant, trying to catch my breath. That was a close call. "Thanks for getting us out of there," I say to Iris and Cilan. I turn to Pikachu. "Hey Pikachu, are you doing alright?"

He smiles. "Pikachu."

I sigh, relieved. "Yes! That's a relief." I stand up.

"So Alice, still after Snivy?" Cilan asks me.

I smile and nod. "You bet! Of course I am!"

Iris glares at me. "Come on, Alice. Why don't you just give up?! After all, Snivy isn't just going to let you catch it. So, accept the fact that it's not happening."

"Although your determination is impressive..." Cilan's voice trails off.

I smile. "Sorry, but there's no way I'm gonna give up! Snivy's as good as mine!"

We find Snivy again, and she stares at me, obviously bored with me. "Snivy! Gotcha this time! Alright! Tepig, I choose you!" I throw his Poké Ball and he appears, ready to fight.

Iris yells to me. "Hey, Alice! Make sure Tepig doesn't get all goo-goo-eyed from Snivy's Attract move, like the others did!"

"Axew!" Axew yells at me.

I whip around, annoyed with her comments. "Please! Don't you think I already know that?!" I turn to Tepig. "Tepig, here's the deal. You need to attack before Snivy uses Attract!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds.

"Alright! Use Ember!" I yell.

Tepig blows sparks of hot fire at Snivy, but she dodges. She blinks and sends hearts towards Tepig, making him fall in love with her.

I bite my lip. "Man, this won't work. Tepig, return!"

Snivy smirks, points to Pikachu and motions him to come forward. But Pikachu knows better.

"Pidove!" My bird up above coos at me.

"Huh?" I smile. "Okay. Great! You wanna try it now?" I turn to a disappointed Pikachu. "Pikachu, let's let Pidove give it a shot."

He nods, understanding. "Pika."

I turn to Pidove. "Pidove! Gust, let's go!" Pidove flaps its wings and sends air towards Snivy, but she dodges, blinking and using Attract again. "Alright, Pidove! Use Quick Attack! Do it!" But it's too late. The hearts surround Pidove as I bite my lip. "Uh-oh!" But as the hearts sink into Pidove, it seems normal, and not affected. "Huh?!" This can only mean one thing. "What do you know? So, Pidove's a girl. Some lucky break!" Snivy uses Vine Whip and lunges for Pidove. "Pidove! Dodge it!" She does, and Snivy surrounds herself with leaves, and shoots them to Pidove. "Again!" Pidove dodges them again. "Alright! Pidove, use Gust, quick!" Pidove flaps her wings, which inflicts damage on Snivy. "Air Cutter, let's go!" Pidove sends sharp knives of air towards Snivy. "Use Quick Attack!" Charging with full speed, Pidove slams into a weakened Snivy. "Okay! Go, Poké Ball!" I throw a Poké Ball, and Snivy's sucked into it. It drops to the ground once it shuts, shaking. Suddenly, it bursts open, Snivy struggling to get up. She smiles. "One more time, Pidove! Use Quick Attack!" Pidove tries to smack into Snivy again, but Snivy blocks it using Vine Whip. "Way to go! Pidove, use Air Cutter!" Pidove sends the knives of wind towards Snivy, knocking her onto the ground and making her try to get up. "This is it!" I yell, throwing a Poké Ball. "Go, Poké Ball!" It taps her head and sucks her in, closing and falling to the ground. It shakes numerous times, and finally clicks shut, signaling Snivy's mine. I smile. "Alright! I caught a Snivy!" My Pokémon cheer with me. "Snivy, come on out!" She does, and looks at me. "Glad you're on board. Now together, let's you and I win the Unova League!"

Snivy stares at me, and then smiles. "...Snivy."


	8. Saving Darmanitan From the Bell!

Saving Darmanitan From the Bell!

Chapter 8

Saving Darmanitan From the Bell

I sit at the table, stomach whimpering and growling fiercely. I'm so hungry now...I can't take it anymore! I start to whine. "Iris! Cilan! Is lunch ready yet? Man, am I starving!" Well, I'm always starving.

Iris hands me a plate of berries on a stick. "Here you go! The chef has spoken!" I stare at the plate. "Since tonight's a full moon, I skewered some berries and cooked up some Moon Watch Dumplings."

Despite how delicious it looks, I roll my eyes. "Oh, please."

"I wouldn't really call that cooking," Cilan says gently.

Iris closes her eyes, a dumpling in her hand. "Whatever. If it's yummy, it's fine." She takes a bite.

I smile. "Hey. I want one, too!" I reach of one, but the plate is snatched away, and I hit the table. "Ow!" I look up to see Cilan, holding the plate.

"Not so fast," he says, a tint of amusement in his voice. My vegetable paella I made with fresh vegetables and olive oil will be ready in no time!"

I look over his shoulder and to the place where he's cooking. My mouth waters at the sight of the food. "Wow, that looks good!"

"Pikachu?" my buddy asks.

"Axew?" Iris's Pokémon adds.

Cilan smiles at them. "Don't worry. I didn't forget you. Here's some Pokémon food, using the natural flavor of Oran Berries." He places two bowls of food in front of them. _Aww! What a gentleman!_ He goes back to check up on his food. "Good! The paella is ready!"

I stand up, failing to containing my hunger. "Awesome! Then let's eat! Huh?!" A small, round red shape catches my eye. I turn to see it staring at me. _A Pokémon?!_

"Whoa!" Iris gasps. "What's that?"

I take out my Pokédex and scan it. "Let's see."

**Darumaka, the Zen Charm Pokémon. When asleep, even when pushed or pulled, it cannot be knocked over. **

I smile. "You're Darumaka!"

Iris kneels down to it and smiles. "Aw! You're so cute!" She starts pulling on its eyebrows, which I can tell it doesn't like. It turns to her and suddenly releases a Flamethrower attack in her face. She coughs out smoke, and I hide a giggle.

"Darumaka's the kind of Pokémon that stays focused and never gives up!" Cilan says. "Many think of it as a good luck Pokémon."

"Whoa!" I stare at the red Pokémon in awe.

I suddenly hear Pikachu's voice, strained and angered. "Pika pika!"

I stand up and turn to him and Axew. They seem to be arguing. "Hey. What's going on?"

"Pika..." Pikachu points next to Axew's bowl of food.

I gasp. "Pikachu's food is gone!"

"Pikachu!" my buddy growls to Axew.

"It was Axew?" I ask him.

"Ax!" Axew yells in defense.

"Axew says it didn't eat Pikachu's food," Iris says for him. "Maybe Pikachu ate it and forgot."

_But Pikachu isn't like that. And he never lies about stuff like this. In fact, Pikachu has never lied about anything in the five solid years I've known him. _

"Pika pika!" Pikachu says.

I turn to Darumaka. "Darumaka, did you see anything?" But his body is in a round shape, and his eyes are closed. "Uh-oh. I think it's asleep!"

Iris looks at him. "Sure looks that way."

"A Pokémon with a mild personality, yet with an element of surprise, as well," Cilan sums up.

"And when it's asleep, you can't knock it over, no matter what, right?" I add.

"I wanna try!" Iris cheers. She gently pushes on Darumaka's cheek, watching him sway side to side. "Wow! This is fun!"

_And she calls me a little kid. _

A collection of sounds is heard from behind me. I turn to see Pikachu and Axew fighting. I gasp. "Hey! Knock it off, Pikachu!"

"You too, Axew!" Iris orders. "Stop!"

I grab Pikachu while Iris grabs Axew, and we pull them apart. I hold Pikachu in my arms tightly to protect him in case Axew wants to hurt him again.

"What happened?" Cilan asks.

Iris turns to Axew's bowl of food, but it's gone. "Huh?! Now Axew's Pokémon food is gone!"

"Axew! Axew!" the Dragon-type accuses.

"You're saying Pikachu ate it?!" Iris flashes a glare at me and Pikachu.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yelps. "Pikachu!"

"Huh?" I tilt my head. "You say Darumaka did it?"

He nods. "Pika pika."

"But Darumaka was fast asleep the whole time," Cilan tells him.

I put Pikachu on the table. "That's right. Darumaka, you've gotta wake up! Darumaka!" I shake him, but he doesn't move. "Sleeping like a log," I groan. I turn around and suddenly see another red shape, identical to Darumaka. "Another Darumaka!" I notice it has the two bowls of Pokémon food and the plate of Moon Watch Dumplings.

"There are two Darumaka!" Cilan gasps in amazement.

"Come back!" Iris yells.

Suddenly, a fire blast blocks our path and makes us shriek. I grab a Poké Ball. "Oshawott, I choose you!" I throw it and Oshawott appears, ready for a fight.

"Good choice, using a water-type to deal with a Fire-type," Cilan compliments.

I give him a small smile and turn to Oshawott. "Oshawott, Water Gun!" Oshawott let's water blast from his mouth and shoots at the Darumaka, but they divide and the blast misses them. "What?! No way!" They both fire a Flamethrower at Oshawott. "Dodge it, Oshawott!" But the heat's too much and both attacks collide into Oshawott. I run to him, taking him into my arms. "Oshawott! You okay?" His body's so hot my hands are burning from touching his small body.

Oshawott whimpers. "...wott..."

"It's knocked out," Iris says.

"Two Flamethrowers will cause a lot of damage," Cilan tells me.

I stand up, Oshawott in my arms. "We need to get to a Pokémon Center."

Cilan motions to the small town in front of us. "There should be one right up ahead."

"Right." I give him a nod and we start to run to the Pokémon Center.

Once we're in the Pokémon Center, I'm close to crying. "Nurse Joy! Will my Oshawott be okay?" Oshawott lies on a gurney meant for Pokémon, still burnt.

She gives me a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. Oshawott will be fine."

I force a small smile. "Thanks, Nurse Joy."

She turns to her assistant. "Audino, if you please?"

Audino nods. "Audino." She rolls Oshawott out of the room.

_Oh, please let Oshawott be alright!_

After a few antagonizing minutes, Nurae Joy smiles at me. "Your Oshawott is completely healed and feeling fine."

"Audino!" her assistant cheers.

Oshawott smiles at me, and I sigh in relief at my sea otter. "Osha!"

"Thank you so much!" I say. I turn to Oshawott. "Glad you're feeling better?"

He nods. "Osha!" I return him to his Poké Ball, where I know he'll be safe.

"But still, those two Darumaka are so annoying!" Iris complains.

_You're one to talk, Iris. But I see her point. They could've seriously injured Oshawott!_

Nurse Joy gasps. "What? You met those two?"

Iris nods. "Yeah. You know them?"

She nods. "Yes." She looks out the window. "Those two Darumaka lived here in town, along with Darmanitan. At first, they all couldn't have been friendlier to the townspeople. Until one day, the Darumaka started to mysteriously steal people's food. The two Darumaka were always with the Darmanitan, but for some reason, only the two Darumaka stole food."

"And those two stole our food as well," Cilan tells her.

"Yeah," I say. "And Oshawott tried to stop them."

Joy nods. "That's what happened."

Iris speaks up. "I'll bet you those two Darumaka are really hungry."

"Maybe, but they didn't used to steal people's food like that," Joy says.

"Something must've happened," I say.

Cilan nods in agreement. "Yeah..."

"What's that?" Iris asks, looking out the window.

Joy smiles. "Oh. You must be asking about the Clock Tower. It's one of the oldest buildings in town. So old in fact, the clock and bell no longer work. I'm afraid it's going to be torn down soon." She says the last part with emotion.

"Aw," Iris says. "That's such a shame."

"Yes," Joy agrees.

Suddenly, a growling noise breaks the silence. "Huh?" Embarrassed, I realized my stomach's the source of the growling. I laugh nervously. "Sorry. I'm really hungry, I guess."

"Because of what the Darumaka did, we haven't had lunch yet," Cilan explains to Nurse Joy.

"I vote we stay here for the night," Iris says. "And have dinner right away."

I smile and nod. "I'm with you on that!"

"Pikachu!" my yellow mouse cheers.

Once we're seated in the dining room with the other Trainers, Iris and I eat hurriedly. I'm so hungry I don't even care what I'm eating.

"You know what?" Cilan says. "You two are actually quite alike."

After a moment, Iris and I turn on him, both screaming. "WAIT! YOU THINK I ACT LIKE HER?!"

Cilan seems stunned. "Uh...uh..." He chuckles nervously. I let my glare soften. He's cute when he's stunned.

Nurse Joy starts to make an announcement. "Excuse me! Tonight's a full moon, so we have Moon Watch Dumplings for dessert!"

Cheers erupt from the Trainers and I stand up, looking at Nurse Joy. "I'll help you hand them out."

Iris, Cilan and I follow Joy into the pantry, where the Moon Watch Dumplings are stored. But when she opens the door and turns on the light, we're met with two familiar creature.

I gasp. "The Darumaka!"

"Not you again!" Iris groans.

The Darumaka make a break for it, but Iris and I spring after them. "Hey!" I yell. "Come back here!" They escape through the open window and disappear into the night. I growl and throw a Poké Ball. "Pidove, I choose you!" She appears. "Follow those Darumaka!"

"Pidove!" she coos. She flies after the two Darumaka.

I climb through the window and jump into the bushes, wanting to follow Pidove. But a voice stops me.

"Alice! What are you doing?!" Iris hisses.

"I'm gonna find out why those two Darumaka are stealing food!" With that, I run off and follow Pidove. After a minute, I hear Iris and Cilan running behind me. "Come back, you two!"

Suddenly, when we come to two roads, one Darumaka takes the left, the other takes the right. "They split up!" Iris yells.

"I'll go this way!" I yell, running down the right road.

"Me too!" Iris says.

"I'll go this way!" Cilan yells. I think he's taking the left road.

Personally, I'm glad Iris is coming with me. I don't want her to be with Cilan...alone. I'm not trying to separate them, but I'm scared one of them will admit their feelings to each other if they have any, and I don't want that to happen.

Iris and I follow the Darumaka down several roads, and chase it. Suddenly, when we go down one road, the Darumaka is nowhere to be found. I pant, my throat burning, and glare. I guess we lost it.

We head back towards the Pokémon Center, but before we get there, I see a familiar shape. "Cilan!" I run to him, not caring how much my throat hurts. "Any luck?"

"Sorry," he says, shaking his head. "I lost track of it."

"Us, too," Iris says.

I glare, avoiding eye contact with my friends. "Where could they've gone?"

"Pika..." Pikachu murmurs.

"Pidove!" Pidove lands on a lamp post and points to the right. "Dove!" I turn to see the Clock Tower, the two Darumaka sneaking in.

"There they are!" I yell. I run after the two Pokémon, Cilan and Iris right next to me.

We run into the Clock Tower and follow the Darumaka. "Come back!" I yell. They turn around at the sound of my voice. "Hold it right there!" They shriek and run away faster. "Stop!" We run up the stairs, and by now, my throat's really on fire. "You're not getting away!"

We run up some more stairs, and stop at a floor. The two Darumaka are no where to be seen. I frown.

"I wonder if they kept going up?" Biting my lip, I cross my arms, thinking.

Suddenly, when I turn around, the two Darumaka both shoot Flamethrowers at me. I yelp, jumping out of the way and landing on my back.

"Stop!" I yell to them. "Why are you two doing this?!"

Cilan suddenly turns around and gasps. "Look, Alice! Behind you!"

"Huh?" I turn around to see a bright red wall of fire coming straight towards me. I throw a Poké Ball. "Oshawott, put out the fire with Water Gun!" Oshawott appears and lets the cold water from his mouth destroy the fire. The two Darumaka then shoot their Flamethrower attacks at me. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" He jumps off my shoulder and releases a bolt of electricity, blocking the fire with the bolt. Once the fire's cleared, I yell to Oshawott. "Quick! Oshawott, use Water Gun!" Oshawott fires Water Gun at the two Darumaka, crashing them into the wall.

Iris runs to my side. "Alice, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I say.

I turn to the Darumaka, but their eyes are closed, bodies in fully round shapes. "They're asleep again," Iris observes.

"That has to be how they recover their strength," Cilan says.

Suddenly, the Darumaka open their eyes, jump up over our heads and land on the other side of us. Growling, I turn around fully to face the two Pokémon.

"Stop!" I yell. "Darumaka! We're not here to pick a fight with you!"

"Yeah!" Iris adds. "We're your friends!"

The Darumaka's faces soften and they exchange glances. "We're just trying to figure out why'd you want to steal all that food," Cilan says.

The two Darumaka point to the roof. I look to see a little hole in the roof, just big enough to fit a person. "You mean, you wanna get up there?" I ask. The nod when I kneel down. "'Kay. No problem. We'll help you get up there quick."

Carefully, to get me up to the next floor, Cilan helps me onto his shoulders and I reach up into the hole.

"And...up!" I jump into the hole and pull myself up to the next floor. I look down to see the two Darumaka, Pikachu, Axew, Iris and Cilan. "Okay! Made it! Cilan, thanks a lot."

He smiles and I see a faint blush on his face. "Sure!"

I throw a Poké Ball. "Snivy, I chose you!" She appears, a mischievous glint in her half-closed eyes. "Use Vine Whip and lift Pikachu up here!" Snivy nods and the vines snake out of her neck. She lunges them down the hole and they wrap around my Pikachu. She brings him up and places him into my arms. I look down the hole. "Now, you two! You're next!" Each vine Snivy has wraps around each Darumaka and she lifts them up to the next floor. They cheer once they're next to me. "No need to thank me."

Once we help Iris and Cilan up, Iris speaks. "Hey, do you feel heat from the ceiling?"

Now that she mentions it, I do feel gusts of warm air blow onto my body. I don't mind the hot, in fact, I love summer, but I don't like too much hot air.

"I wonder what's up there..." Cilan murmurs.

We follow the Darumaka up to the top floor. I climb the ladder and lift my head up to see what's on the next floor. But what I see makes me gasp.

A large silver shape sits under the bell of the Clock Tower, red-hot flames coming off it. It looks motionless, and not giving off any sign of life. I lift my Pokédex and scan it. "Who's that Pokémon?"

**Darmanitan, the Blazing Pokémon, and the evolved form of Darumaka. Darmanitan switches from Standard Mode to Zen Mode when it has little energy left. **

I put my Pokédex away. "This is the Darmanitan that hangs with the Darumaka!"

"Let me see," Cilan says. "In Standard Mode, its physical powers enhance, while its psychic powers enhance in Zen Mode!"

"Wow!" Iris gasps in amazement. "What a strange Pokémon. I'm burning up! Hey!" She must've seen the flames coming off Darmanitan. "Darmanitan must be giving off that heat!"

"Yeah," Cilan mutters. "I was thinking the same thing!"

I watch as the Darumaka open the sack filled with food and it flies out, going into Darmanitan's mouth.

"It's Psychic!" I realize. "Of course! Those two Darumaka were stealing all that food so they could feed Darmanitan!"

"Pika!" Pikachu gasps.

"Because Darmanitan keeps using Psychic, the heat from Darmanitan's Flame Sac is leaking out!" Cilan says.

Iris frowns. "I don't get it. Isn't it true that Darmanitan switched from Zen Mode to Standard Mode as soon as it recovers?"

Cilan nods. "Right. You'd think it would recover will all that eating."

"So, why hasn't it?" I ask. The Darumaka come to me, holding something. "Hey, what's this?" I look at the black object in their hands.

Iris looks completely clueless, which makes my hide a giggle. "Wha...?"

"It looks like some kind of hook," Cilan tells us.

I take another look at the bell, noticing an outline of light blue is surrounding it. "Something's weird with the bell."

Suddenly, Cilan gasps. "It's...it's floating!" Iris and I gasp. "I think Darmanitan's keeping it suspended using Psychic!"

"Why do that?" Iris asks him.

"Hm...let's see..." His voice trails off. "If that heavy bell were to fall, it would crash through the floor and possibly bring the entire Clock Tower with it. To keep that from happening, Darmanitan must've caught the bell when it started falling. When it couldn't withstand the weight anymore, Darmanitan probably had to switch to Zen Mode to enhance its psychic powers and keep the bell from falling! And to help keep Darmanitan's strength up, those two Darumaka were bringing it as much food as they possibly could!"

I kneel down to the two red creatures. "Is that right?" They nod.

"You've done great," Iris praises them. "Not easy in this situation."

Suddenly, the floor creaks under Darmanitan's weight and flames. "Darmanitan!" I yelp.

"At this rate, Darmanitan's heat will burn right through the floor!" Cilan realizes.

I turn to the Darumaka. "Don't worry. We'll take care of it!" I step forward, a plan unraveling in my mind. "First, we'll fix the hook, and then free Darmanitan!"

"Right!" Iris and Cilan agree.

I throw a Poké Ball. "Tepig, I choose you!"

"Pansage, we need your help as well!" Cilan's Pansage and my Tepig appear in blue flashes.

I turn to my Pokémon. "Tepig, use Ember on that hook!" He nods. Pansage throws the hook up and Tepig scorches it with Ember. The hook falls, not steaming. "No good. It's not hot enough."

The floor creaks under us. "Alice, we really need to hurry!" Cilan yells to me.

Suddenly, the two Darumaka step forward. "Whoa. You two will help us?" They nod eagerly. "Yes! Let's do it then!"

"Pansage, one more time!" Cilan shouts.

Pansage throws the hook up into the air and Tepig blows sparks at it. In addition, the two Darumaka use their Flamethrower attacks to help. Soon, the hook is flaming hot and burning.

"It worked!" I cheer.

"Pansage, use Bullet Seed on that hook!" Cilan yells. Pansage spits small seeds at the hook, rotating it. "Great! Just where we wanted it! Excellent presentation!"

I turn to Oshawott. "Oshawott, use Water Gun!" He blasts the cold water at the hook, making it drop. Pikachu picks it up and smiles. "Alright. Let's hook it to the bell."

"Yeah...but how?" Iris asks.

"We'd need a ladder to reach up there," Cilan says.

Suddenly, I'm lifted into the air. "Whoa!" I notice Pikachu, who's holding the hook, is also lifted. "Darmanitan's using Psychic!" Pikachu and I are lifted and we place the hook where it goes. I reach for the bell, but can't reach it. "It's so close! But I can't reach it!"

Iris and Cilan try to encourage me. "Alice, you can do it!" Iris shouts.

"Keep trying!" Cilan yells to me.

I stretch farther, and feel my fingertips tough the bell. "Come on!" I'm so close! Suddenly, I feel myself being dropped, no longer supported by Psychic, and Pikachu and I fall. We grab onto the bell for dear life as it falls. Suddenly, we stop falling. I look up to see Darmanitan, looking healthy and with its red color. It's holding up the bell to keep it—and us—from falling. "Now it's in Standard Mode!" Pikachu and I jump down. "Thank you! That was a close call! We're not strong enough to lift up the bell. Could you put it back on the hook?"

Darmanitan nods and lifts the bell onto the hook. He jumps down and the two Darumaka run to him, smiling and cheering. Darmanitan pats them both on the head. They all turn to us and cheer, obviously happy.

Cilan smiles. "Wonder what they're saying?"

"I think they're thanking us," Iris says.

I kneel down to the two Darumaka. "And as for you two, no more stealing people's food, okay?" They smile and nod.

Once the morning comes, we're already up and out of the Pokémon Center, ready to begin a new day.

I cheer. "Another day to give it all we've got!"

"Wait!" a voice yells.

I turn to see someone very familiar. "Nurse Joy!"

She runs to us. "The Clock Tower won't be torn down! I thought you'd want to know."

"So, what's gonna happen?" I ask.

She smiles. "It'll be completely restored and maintained. All thanks to the town." We smile at the news. "Yes. And to thank Darmanitan and the Darumaka for protecting it, the town also decreeds they will be able to live there as long as they like."

Cilan smiles. "Delicious! People and Pokémon alike will be happy with a generous gesture like that!"

I look at the Clock Tower and see two small red shapes and a large red shape, waving from the top. "Hey!" I run closer to it. "Hello? Darmanitan and Darumaka? That's great news!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu calls out to them.

"Now, you take care!" Iris yells.

Axew pokes his head out of her hair. "Axew!"

"Till we meet again!" Cilan calls to them.

With that, and another good-bye to Nurse Joy, me, Pikachu and our friends continue our journey to Nacrene City, where my next Gym battle will take place.


	9. The Bloom is on Axew!

The Bloom is on Axew!

Chapter 9

The Bloom is on Axew!

My head rests on my hand, and I can tell I look bored. But so does Pikachu. I look back and forth from Iris and Axew to Cilan and Pansage, who stand in battle mode.

"C'mon, guys!" I whine. "Can't we get in on this, too?"

"Pika!" Pikachu pleads. I can tell he really wants to battle.

Iris shakes her head. "No way! All you'd be doing is trying to win, of course!"

I roll my eyes. "Duh! Isn't that the point?"

"Oh, Alice, you're such a little kid!" Iris chides. "I really don't want you to use Volt Tackle on Axew just to win!"

I blink. She...doesn't want me to use one of my moves in battle?! That doesn't seem completely and/or exactly right, but who cares? But isn't that what you do in battles? And doesn't she know Pikachu's other moves will hurt Axew? Not just Volt Tackle?

"'Kay, then no Volt Tackle," I try.

Iris snaps at me, eyes flashing with pure anger. "No! Be quiet and watch!"

"'Kay. I hear ya," I mutter.

"Pika," Pikachu pouts, crossing his arms.

Axew looks determined. "Axew!"

"You're raring to go, aren't you, Axew?" Iris asks.

The Dragon-type nods. "Ax!"

Iris smiles. "Let's get this show on the road!"

"As you wish," Cilan says. "Pansage, let's serve up just what they asked for."

"Pan! Pansage!" his partner says.

If I had ears like Pikachu, they would perk up. "Asked for? What does that mean?"

"Watch and learn!" Iris yells. "Alright, Axew! Use Scratch!" Axew's claws glow, and he waddles towards Pansage.

Cilan smiles. "Now Pansage, Bullet Seed. Gently."

"Gently?" I raise my eyebrow.

Pansage lets one seed at a time burst from its mouth. The first seed hits Axew, making him cry out. The second and third follow, leaving Axew tumbling on the ground.

I blink. Was that a real attack?! How come Cilan goes easy on Iris? _Does he possibly like her?!_

"Oh, no!" Iris yelps. "Axew!"

I blink twice, taking in the scene. "Whoa. What was that?"

"Pika?" Pikachu adds.

Iris runs to Axew, kneeling down next to him. "Are you okay, Axew?"

He looks at her. "Yew!" He starts crying.

I turn to Pikachu, eyes half open. "That's just pathetic." He nods, crossing his arms. If Axew's in pain because of a little seed like that, he's got a long way to go to evolve into a Haxorus, like Iris told me a while ago.

"Uh...sorry if we overdid it," Cilan apologizes.

"Sage?" Pansage asks.

Iris looks at Axew, who's still crying. "Remember to do your best," Iris reminds him. "'Cause we're in training."

I exchange glances with Pikachu. "So, this is a training battle?"

"Right," Cilan answers. "That's what they asked for. This training is to get Axew used to battling. Nothing too difficult. So, I promised to use all of my moves softly, no more than twenty percent power."

As much as I admire Cilan being polite and sweet, I hate that he's directing those feelings towards Iris and Axew. "And you call that a battle?!"

"It's fine!" Iris snaps in a defensive voice. "Getting used to battling a little bit at a time is a fine way to get started!"

I cross my arms, glaring. "Little bit at a time, huh? Battling's a lot more fun if you really hit it." It's not only fun, but your Pokémon know the full heat of a real battle. That way, they'll know what to expect from their opponent. At least, that's how I trained Pikachu. I didn't make my opponent lower their power. I let them do what they wanted, so Pikachu would learn how to battle the fair way.

"And that, Alice Ketchum, is why you're such a little kid!" Iris screams at me, making me flinch. "Cilan and Pansage are gentlemen. They don't mind adjusting their power for us, got it?!" I bite my lip from retorting anything smart.

Cilan and Pansage slightly bow. "It is an honor to be at service to you and Axew."

"Pan. Pansage," Pansage adds.

I try to keep a positive attitude. "Hey, now that I think about it, this is the first time I've seen you two battle."

"Pikachu!" My buddy follows my lead.

"Alice?" Cilan turns to me. "I suggest we let Iris and Axew do things the way they want, alright?"

Although he's gentle with the words, they annoy me. "Okay. Whatever." I accidentally let some attitude creep into my voice.

"Pika," Pikachu whimpers. I can tell he really wants to battle Pansage or Axew.

"You think you can go on?" Iris asks a still crying Axew.

Axew shakes his head, letting tears fall everywhere and glares at Pansage. "Axew!"

Iris looks like she just won a Battle Tournament. "Axew, you're so strong!"

I yell to Axew, trying to be encouraging. Axew doesn't exactly bother me; his Trainer does. "Yeah! Go get 'em, Axew!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds.

Iris smiles. "Alright then! Where were we? Scratch once more!" Again, Axew's claws glow with power and he runs towards Pansage.

"Now Pansage, block it," Cilan says. Pansage holds Axew's head away from him, making it impossible for Axew to attack.

I lean towards Pikachu. "Axew's sure not cutting it," I mutter.

"Pika," he agrees.

Iris glares. "Come on, Cilan! Get serious!"

He smiles. "I am serious. It's used in Gym battles all the time. First, you stop your opponent's movement, and then attack from a distance. Pansage! Solar Beam!"

Pansage's tuff on his head glows with sunlight and forms into a ball. "Axew!" Iris yells.

I face-palm. "Iris, doesn't Axew know any other moves?!"

She looks down. "Yeah, but they wouldn't do any good."

I blink. "What?! What are you talking about? Why don't you use them?!"

"I don't need your advice, thank you!" she yells. "My advice to you is to let me have my battle and be quiet!"

My eyes widen. "Look out!"

Cilan smiles. "Go, Pansage!"

At his command, Pansage fires a small, weak ball of energy at Axew. It's not as big as Pansage's regular ones, but when it touches Axew, he screams like he's been hit with one of Pikachu's Volt Tackles.

"You know, I've never seen a Solar Beam like that before," I mutter to Pikachu.

Axew rolls into Iris's arms. "Axew! Are you okay?"

"Axew!" he whimpers.

"You know, learning what kind of moves to use is an important part of training," I call out to Iris. "So, why don't you try using a different move for a change?"

She snaps at me. "Quiet! Don't you think I already know that?!"

"What I'm trying to say is that if you don't battle like it's for real, Axew won't ever get strong!" I yell.

"Oh, you think you know everything, don't you?!" Iris screams at me. "We'll show you a real move, alright!"

I smirk under my hat. She probably didn't notice I just used reverse psychology on her to see one of Axew's other moves. _What a kid._"Great! Now, that's what I wanna see! Can't wait!"

"Fine!" Iris looks determined, now. "We'll do it, right Axew?"

I smile. "Yeah! Show 'em how it's done, Axew!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouts to him.

"Axew, use Dragon Rage!" Iris commands.

Axew throws his head back and a glowing blue light gathers at his stomach. He opens his mouth and begins to release it at Pansage, but seems to choke on the energy, and it explodes. Black smoke and blue energy leave all six of us—me, Pikachu, Iris, Axew, Pansage and Cilan—paralyzed and in shock.

I blink. "Awesome...what a move..." Without noticing, I fall off the rock I'm sitting on.

Iris laughs nervously when I get up. "Hehe. Oopsie! Messed it up!" She hangs her head. "Oh, messed it up once again!"

My eyes widen as I look at her. "Once again?!"

"Pika?!" Pikachu's eyes are as wide as quarters.

"Dragon Rage still isn't working right," I hear Iris complain up in the tree she's sitting in. "It's frustrating."

I smile to Cilan, who's sitting next to me. "There's a better name for Axew's Dragon Rage."

"And the name is Dragon Sneeze," the emerald-eyed boy says, smiling.

"That's it!" I say.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu laughs.

I turn to Iris. "So, from now on, we both think you should just call it Dragon Sneeze."

"It's not a sneeze, okay?!" Iris yells at me. "And in case you hadn't noticed, I'm very upset about this!"

Cilan smiles apologetically. "My apologies. I was just joking."

"Hey, doesn't Axew know any other moves?" I ask Iris.

Iris shakes her head, holding Axew in her lap. "No. Only Scratch and Dragon Rage. That's it. If I understand it, Dragon Rage is normally supposed to cause damage by firing balls of energy at your opponent. But every time Axew uses it, the energy balls end up exploding." Axew hops out of her lap and scurries away, climbing another tree with Pikachu at his side. "So, you see, I thought it would be good to take it slow, and learn as we go along. But the I realized its a long, long road to evolve into Haxorus."

Axew climbs back up into the tree, carrying two apples in his mouth. He gives one to Iris, smiling.

"Say! Those tusks came in handy," Cilan remarks.

Iris takes a bite out of the apple. "It's delicious! Thank you, Axew!" She pats his head, and jumps off and towards the tree.

"That kind of praise makes Axew happy," Cilan says. "No wonder it's off to get more friut."

"Now, make sure you don't go too far away!" Iris calls.

Axew nods, Pikachu following him. I know I don't need to tell Pikachu not to go far. He and I always find each other, no matter how far we are apart.

"I'll tell ya," I say. "I was really impressed with Axew's power. You know what? A little special training and you'll have Dragon Rage working great!"

"Yeah," Cilan says. "Just by the looks of that explosion, it's easy to see Axew's potential is huge."

"You think so?" Iris asks. "Thanks, guys!"

I smile. "I got it! This time, let Axew battle with us!" Iris's expression turns to an unsure one.

"It's worth a try," Cilan tells her. "It certainly looks like Axew's up for it. And a battle with Alice will definitely have the feel of the real thing!"

Iris looks up, nose in the air. "No way! I don't want to lose!"

_Iris, that's the whole point of the battle. You won't win every battle you're challenged to._ "But with that kind of attitude, you'll never be in a Pokémon battle!" I point out.

Iris won't give in. "Maybe so..."

I decide to change the subject, since it's bothering me so much. "Hey, you never told me how you got Axew in the first place."

Cilan leans in, close to my shoulder. I can literally feel his hot breath on my skin. "I'd like to hear about that as well."

Iris hesitates. "...It was a gift."

Cilan and I blink. "Huh? From who?" he asks.

"An Elder," Iris answers.

I tilt my head to the right, forgetting Cilan's head is on my right, and our heads touch. I blush. "An Elder?" I move my head away from Cilan's, blushing crazily.

Iris nods, hiding a giggle when she sees me blushing. "Right. From my hometown. See, back where I come from, it's a quiet little village where they specialize in raising Dragon-type Pokémon." She tells us how before she started her journey, the Elder gave her a newly hatched Axew to train into a Haxorus. "So, that's the story," she says after she finishes. "It's been a while since we began our journey, and I'm starting to realize I have to do something and fast. You see, Cilan, that's why I asked you to help me out by having a battle with me in the first place."

He nods. "Makes sense."

I blink. "So, Iris, is that Elder lady your grandma?"

Iris closes her eyes, obviously annoyed with my question. "No, Alice. She's the leader of the village. Right, Axew? ...Axew?" We look around, but the small Pokémon is nowhere to be found. Neither is Pikachu. "Now, where could those two have gone?"

I smile. "I wouldn't worry about it. As long as Axew's with Pikachu, he's safe."

Suddenly, a huge explosion is heard from the nearby forest. Iris gasps. "What was that?!"

I recognize the explosion colors. "It's Axew's Dragon Sneeze!"

She whips around to face me. "Funny! I'm going!" She jumps off the tree and starts running towards the forest.

"We'll go with you!" Cilan shouts after her. We jump off the tree and follow her into the forest.

When we reach it and run in, a yellow shape tackles me. "Pika pi!" Pikachu clings to me for dear life.

I'm feeling two emotions: relief, since Pikachu's alright, but fear, since Axew's not here. "Pikachu! Where's Axew? What's wrong?!"

"You two were together!" Iris says.

My buddy seems to be freaking out! He jumps out of my arms, making gestures with his arms. "Pika! Pikachu! Pika! Pika pika pika! Pika pika! Pika pika!"

I hold my hands up. "Whoa! Slow down, buddy. I can't understand you!"

Suddenly, a cry is heard. "Ax!"

Iris's head shoots up. "Axew!"

"Axew! Axew!" The cry is heard again.

Suddenly, a large creature with Axew between the two horns on its head reveals itself behind one of the bushes. The creature swings its head repeatedly, trying to get Axew off it.

"What's that?!" Cilan yelps.

"Axew, what are you doing up there?!" Iris shouts.

"And who's that Pokémon?!" Quickly, I hold up my Pokédex.

**Scolipede, the Megapede Pokémon. Scolipede catches its opponents with great speed and attacks using horns on its head. Scolipede is highly aggressive and will not give up until victorious. **

"Here it comes!" Cilan warns.

"Pika!" Pikachu screams in pure Pika terror.

Iris, Cilan, Pikachu and I turn around and run as fast as we can away from Scolipede. "Oh, man! What are we gonna do now?!" I shout.

Suddenly, a shot of poison hits a nearby rock, which makes Cilan stop, and me slamming into him. The rock melts under contact with the poison. "It used Toxic!" Cilan realizes.

"Axew, no!" Iris shouts. Scolipede shoots a blast of sick poison at her.

"Look out!" I pull her out of the way, the poison blast just missing her. "Cilan and I will handle this. We'll take care of Scolipede, no doubt!"

"That's right!" he says. "Pansage, let's go!" Pansage appears.

I throw a Poké Ball. "Snivy, I choose you!" Snivy appears, looking confident, despite the size of Scolipede.

"Use Bullet Seed!" Cilan yells. Pansage blasts tiny seeds at Scolipede, making him halt.

"Snivy, use Vine Whip!" I yell to my grass snake. Snivy's vines snake out and one vine wraps around each horn on Scolipede's head. Scolipede swings his head around though, swinging her around. "Snivy!" She lets go of Scolipede and falls into my arms, shaking. The poor thing's had too much.

Cilan comes up next to me. "The difference in power is just too great!"

I look up to see the huge creature coming towards us. "It's coming again! Snivy, return." Snivy returns to her Poké Ball, eyes closed.

"We have to hold back that power somehow," Cilan tells me.

Suddenly, Iris jumps in front of us. "Axew, I'll save you! Don't worry!" In her hand is another Poké Ball.

Cilan and I gasp. "You're going to use another Pokémon?!" I yelp. Iris is about to throw it, but hesitates. "Iris! What's wrong?! Hurry up!"

She nods. "Okay, here goes nothing! Excadrill, let's go!" She throws the Poké Ball and it opens, revealing a brown and red shape in a long shape. It drops to the ground, motionless.

"What's that?" Cilan asks.

Iris looks down. "I guess you're still in a bad mood." I take out my Pokédex and scan the creature.

**Excadrill, the Subterrene Pokémon, and the evolved form of Drilbur. Excadrill can dig maze-like underground tunnels for over one hundred meters and is powerful enough to cut through thick iron plates using its steel claws. **

"It doesn't look a thing like the Pokédex," I say.

"Right," Cilan says, turning to me. "That's because Excadrill assumes that form when it's digging its way underground. So, why does it look that way now when it's above ground?" He turns back to the motionless shape.

Iris kneels down to the shape. "Please, Excadrill. You've got to help me out!" She glares. "Forget it! I'll do it myself! Okay Cilan, you make sure Scolipede doesn't go anywhere, and I'll make my move!"

"Are you sure?" he asks her.

She's silent for a while. "I don't have any choice. You see, this is part of my trial the Elder told me about. It's my duty."

He nods. "Of course."

"And we're gonna help you!" I say.

"Pansage, use Solar Beam on Scolipede!" Cilan yells. Pansage gathers a powerful ball of light and energy and throws it at Scolipede.

"Tepig, I choose you!" I throw a Poké Ball and Tepig appears. Pikachu jumps down besides him, both ready to fight. "Tepig, use Ember, and Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Tepig inhales and blows hot sparks of fire at Scolipede, while Pikachu shocks the ground near Scolipede's paws.

"Alright, Pansage! Use Solar Beam!" Cilan yells. Pansage fires another beam of solar energy at Scolipede.

"Iris! Do it!" I scream.

She nods from the tree she's in. "Right." She jumps down and swings, using the vines. She swings towards Scolipede and grabs Axew, landing behind the huge creature, Axew in her hands. "Wow! I did it!"

"Iris, way to go!" I yell to her.

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"You were great!" Cilan praises. "You too, Pansage!" He returns his smiling Pokémon.

I turn to Tepig. "Awesome, Tepig." I return my fire pig, who's also smiling.

"I was so worried about you!" Iris says, hugging Axew. Scolipede suddenly turns and glares at her. "I think it's still angry!"

I gasp. "Iris!" Scolipede starts kicking up dirt, and accidentally kicks Excadrill's motionless form. It rolls in between me and Cilan, and hits a rock. Suddenly, it starts moving. "It's moving!"

Excadrill burries himself in the ground and appears a second later, bursting from the ground from under Scolipede. It unravels itself, revealing what Excadrill would look like above ground.

"Excadrill..." Iris murmurs.

"Iris, stop goofing off and give Excadrill a command!" I yell.

She sighs. "Why? Excadrill never listens to me." Cilan and I gasp.

_How can a Pokémon not listen to its Trainer?! That reminds me of my Charizard back in Kanto..._

Scolipede spits poison at Excadrill, who blocks it. I gasp. "Excadrill deflected Toxic!"

"Excadrill's a Steel-type, so Poison-type moves won't have any effect," Cilan says.

Excadrill keeps attacking Scolipede, landing critical hits over and over again.

"Wow! Awesome!" I'm starting to like Excadrill.

"It sure doesn't miss a beat," Cilan remarks. "Underneath all that power, I detect a delicate hint of battle flavor!"

Suddenly, Excadrill flips Scolipede back into the deep parts of the forest, far away from where the three of us are standing.

Iris yells to Scolipede. "Scolipede! We didn't mean to startle you!" Meanwhile, Excadrill cheers with triumph.

"Excadrill sure seems to be satisfied," Cilan says.

Iris turns to Excadrill. "Excadrill, thanks for helping us out like that."

I nod. "You're really amazing!"

Excadrill hits Iris with an ice cold glance and suddenly changes its form to a motionless shape.

"Back to that, huh?" Cilan murmurs.

Iris sighs, holding up Excadrill's Poké Ball. "Excadrill, return." He does, and she looks at his Poké Ball. Nothing ever changes. But I know one thing: someday, when the time is right, we're gonna battle together!" She kneels down to Axew. "Axew, are you okay?" He nods. "I'm so sorry it turned out to be a scary day for you."

Cilan speaks up. "You know, battling is an art form, and it takes time to perfect, like the art of cooking. You just relax, and train Axew at your own pace. Of course, the same thing goes for Excadrill as well, naturally."

Iris smiles. "Thanks. We will." She turns to Axew. "Okay. What do you say we relax and keep training at our own pace?" Axew cheers.

I smile. "Yes! Then what do you say we go and have that battle?!"

Iris sighs. "You don't listen, Alice. See, I just told you we're going to relax and keep training at our own pace. If you want to battle so badly, then why don't you just battle Pikachu?"

I pause. Battle with my own Pokémon? I look at him. "...Okay. Sounds like a blast!" We run towards the clearing, which will be a suitable battlefield. "Alright! Ready, Pikachu?" He nods. "Thunderbolt, let's go!" He shocks me with a powerful bolt of electricity. I grit my teeth. "Nice! Now, use Volt Tackle, 'cause here I come!" I run towards him, but he slams into me, covered in sparks. He knocks me down onto the ground.

I'm not in pain because of his moves. I trust Pikachu with my life, and I know he won't try to hurt me with his moves. I smile as I get back up, still sparking.

"I'm not finished yet!"

This time, Pikachu uses Quick Attack, and slams into me, knocking us both on the ground. Pikachu lays on my stomach, and I cuddle up with him, and we let the late afternoon sun take us both to sleep.


	10. A Rival Battle for Club Champ!

A Rival Battle for Club Champ!

Chapter 10

A Rival Battle for Club Champ!

I run through the streets of Luxuria Town, trying to find some specific building. I skid to a stop once I see it. "There it is! Found it!" The Pokémon Battle Club.

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers. His grip tightens on my shoulder as I run inside.

"Yeah!" I gasp. "Wow!" I go to the Bulletin Board. "Perfect!" I start clicking on the buttons. "Let's see what kind of Trainers I can battle to get ready for the Nacrene Gym!"

I hear gasps and pants from behind me, and know it's Iris and Cilan. "We finally caught up!" I hear Cilan say, relieved.

They come up next to me. "Running off like that?" Iris shrugs. "The Battle Club isn't going anywhere, you know. You are such a kid!" Suddenly, I gasp so hard that my throat stings afterwards. Iris yelps. "You scared me to death!"

"Look!" I point to the screen. "It's Trip! Trip's here at the Battle Club!"

I remember the annoying boy with ease. He and I battled when I first came to Unova in Nuvema Town. Pikachu and I would've won against him and his Snivy, but Pikachu couldn't use any Electric-type moves, thanks to an incident with Zekrom. The kid thought he was so better than me, but when it's really the other way around.

"So, who's Trip?" Iris asks.

"I had no idea he was in town," Cilan says.

Eyes widening, I turn to Cilan. "Cilan, you know Trip?"

He nods. "He challenged the Striaton Gym, too. And he won himself a badge."

I bite my lip. "He must've done really well." But I bet he didn't battle all three Gym Leaders and won that badge.

"Will you two stop the private conversation and tell me who Trip is?!" Iris whines.

I nod. "Yeah. He's a Trainer I met at Professor Juniper's lab. The first Trainer I battled with in the Unova region. Alright!" I smile. "I'm gonna get to battle Trip again!"

"Pika pika!" My buddy hugs my neck in happiness.

"Right," a voice behind us says. "Got it. When it comes to battling, you leave it to us, and welcome to the Pokémon Battle Club." I turn to see a familiar man. "So, you want to have a battle with Trip, eh? What's your name, kid?"

I blink. "My name's Alice. Hold on..."

"Uh...is their something wrong?" he asks.

I shake my head. "There's nothing wrong, but didn't you and I meet in Accumula Town?"

"Accumula Town?" He smiles. "Of course! You must've paid a visit to my cousin's club."

"Your cousin?" I ask.

He nods. "Indeed. Look over there." He points to the side, where a picture hangs on the wall. Many men who look like him are in the picture.

"Whoa," I mutter.

"This is the Don George you met in Accumula Town, and this is me over here. Don George of Luxuria Town." He points to two men in the picture.

I smile nervously. "Wow. Talk about look alikes."

"Pika," Pikachu agrees.

Don George clicks some keys on the Bulletin Board. "Allow me to get Trip for you. I'll contact him on the Cross-Tranceiver."

"Cross-Tranceiver?" I ask.

"It lets you communicate with anyone anywhere," Don George answers. "So no matter where they are, you can contact them easily." In a minute or so, Trip's face shows up on the screen. "Hello, Trip! I have someone here who'd like to have a Pokémon battle with you."

I step near the screen and see Trip. He hasn't changed much since I last saw him; he still has that dirty blonde hair and those clear eyes. "Hey, Trip! Long time, no see!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu says.

His eyes seem to widen. "It's Alice. So, you're in town, too?"

"That's right!" Iris says, pushing me out of the way. "We're traveling with Alice, and my name's Iris! Glad to need you!

"Looks like you're doing well, Trip," Cilan comments.

Trip's eyes widen even more. "Cilan? From the Striaton Gym?!"

Cilan nods. "Right. You see, Alice, Iris and I are traveling together."

I show myself to Trip again. "So, you wanna have a battle with me? What do you say, Trip?"

He hesitates. "Thanks, but no thanks. What's the point of battling your Pikachu when it lost against my Snivy, who had zero experience back them?! It would be a waste of time."

I growl. "No way! Pikachu wasn't in very good shape back then. We weren't able to use Electric-type moves because of Zekrom! Pikachu's not my only Pokémon! I've got a bunch of other Pokémon since then!"

Don George lays a hand on my shoulder. "Now, take it easy. Calm down." I hadn't realized I was shaking the system.

"And quiet down, while you're at it," a voice says.

I turn to see the clear-eyed boy. "It's Trip!"

He sighs. "I could hear that loud mouth of yours all the way down the street."

I go to him, smiling. "Great! So Trip, you're gonna have a battle with me?"

"Maybe," he says. "If we're gonna have a six-on-six full battle, I guess it's worth doing.

I lose my smile and frown. "A full battle? Uh..." I chuckle nervously. "I really can't do that. I only have five Pokémon still."

"Just five?!" Trip's voice sounds shocked.

I hide a glare from him. "Yeah, but look." I take out my Trio Badge from my pocket and hold it out. "I already won a badge." I smile to myself when I see the small green diamond in the badge.

Trip smirks. "I already won two badges."

My eyes widen. "Two badges?! You mean it?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asks.

"It's basic, Alice," Trip sighs. "Don George, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to take a pass on this battle."

Don George gasps. "You're serious?"

"What's the point?" Trip asks. "Alice had only five Pokémon and one badge."

I growl and glare at him. "It doesn't matter how many Pokémon I have! You're not gonna beat me!" I'm not gonna give up like this without a fight!

"Pika pika!" Pikachu growls at him.

Trip smiles smugly. "Amazing. Where you get all that groundless confidence is beyond me." He drops his voice low so only I can hear. "Are all the Trainers from the Kanto region boonies, just like you?" He smirks.

I bare my teeth, like a Pikachu would. "What did you say?!" This kid totally pisses me off!

"Think I'll look for a better opponent in the next town." He smirks and walks away. "See ya."

He's about to open the door when Iris's voice cuts him off. "Why not go for it? It's just a battle. It's obvious you're quite the talker, but big talkers like you are all such little kids."

Trip glares at her through his clear smug eyes. "Little kids?"

"As for me, I'd really enjoy seeing the two of you have a battle," Cilan speaks up. "It's like passion and coolness colliding, creating a crisp and favorable combination with lots of depths. This is just the kind of battle I'd like to see." He gives me a small wink, and I blush.

Trip hesitates, and then speaks, sighing. "I take it back. Don George, please be the ref of our five-on-five battle."

The battle manager nods. "Sure. I'd love to."

I swallow. "Hey, Trip. Thanks a lot!" This can be my chance to show him what I'm really made of!

"Thing is, I already know what the result will be," he says. "It could end up being a total waste of my time."

He walks off towards one of the battle rooms, and I watch him go. I growl, annoyed at how easily that boy gets under my skin. But this time I'll show him how fierce Kanto region Trainers battle!

"The five-on-five Pokémon battle between Trip and Alice will now get underway," Don George announces. "Each Trainer may use five Pokémon and can substitute. The battle will be over when all five Pokémon from either side are unable to battle. Get ready! Go!"

"Okay, then, Tranquill! I need your help!" Trip throws a Poké Ball, and a large gray bird, much like Pidove, comes out, flying in the air.

I gasp. "Wow! Tranquill!" I quickly scan it with my Pokédex.

**Tranquill, the Wild Pidgeon Pokémon, and the evolved form of Pidove. It is believed that a peaceful place without conflict exists deep in the forest where Tranquill live.**

I take out my first Poké Ball. "Alright! Oshawott, I choose you!" My tiny but powerful sea otter appears, ready to fight.

Trip's clear eyes widen. "Isn't that..."

I smirk, knowing what he's thinking. "You've got it! It's the Oshawott from Professor Juniper's lab! Now, think back to the battle at the Striaton Gym, Oshawott, and use Water Gun!" Oshawott lets a cool blast of water burst from his mouth and straight at Tranquill.

"Dodge it, Tranquill!" Trip yells. Tranquill does, dodging with ease. "Use Aerial Ace!"

In a flash, Tranquill flies through Oshawott it seems, knocking him down in only two hits. The poor sea otter is beaten.

"Oshawott's unable to battle!" Don George yells. "Tranquill is the winner!"

I stare at poor little Oshawott. "No way!" I did not lose Oshawott after only one move from Tranquill! This has to be a dream!

"You see, my Tranquill has the ability Super Luck," Trip says smugly. Tranquill smirks at me, flying at Trip's side.

I growl. "Oshawott, return and get some rest." He returns back to his Poké Ball. "Super Luck's not stopping us! Alright! Tepig, I choose you!" Tepig appears, glaring at Tranquill.

Trip raises his eyebrow. "Your Water-type was a bust, so now a Fire-type? Talk about straightforward."

"Hey! Straightforward's just fine with me! You can do it, Tepig!" I yell to him.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells encouragingly.

"Tepig! Ember, go!" Tepig blows sparks of fire at Tranquill, but the bird dodges each and every one of them. "Use Ember one more time!" Tepig does, but Tranquill dodges.

"Tranquill, use Double Team!" Tranquill splits up into many copies of itself, and Tepig looks back and forth at every one, trying to decide which bird is the real Tranquill.

I yell to him. "Don't be fooled by it, Tepig!" He shoots me a nervous glance, but nods.

"Now, use Work Up!" Trip shouts. Each of Tranquill's copies glow with a faint red light and steam, like they're being charged with fire.

I raise my eyebrow. "What's that?"

"It's a move that raises the user's attack power!" Cilan yells to me.

"Tranquill, Aerial Ace!" Tranquill flies through Tepig, knocking him to the ground. I recognize the swirls on his eyes that signal he's down for good.

"Tepig is unable to battle! Tranquill is the winner!" Don George announces.

I run to my fire pig. "Tepig!" I kneel down to him, and see that he looks sad and defeated. "Tepig, you okay?" He makes a small whimpering noise in his throat that makes me want to pick him up and wrap him in an embrace, squeezing the life out of him. "Thanks, Tepig. Now, you take a good rest." He returns to his Poké Ball.

"You should definitely start from the top," Trip smirks. "Basic."

I stand up. "Yeah? Well, we're just getting warmed up! Pikachu, what do you say we show them some real strength?"

He jumps off my shoulder and onto the battlefield. "Pika! Pikachu!"

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" I yell. He sends a blast of lightning towards Tranquill, but as usual, the Flying-type Pokémon dodges it.

Trip gives a smile. "So, Pikachu really can use Electric-type moves. Okay, Tranquill! Work Up!" Tranquill steams with energy. "Now, Aerial Ace!" The bird storms right through my poor yellow mouse, knocking him to the ground. I'm about to lose hope before I see Pikachu trying to get up.

"Get up, Pikachu!" I yell. He shakes, trying to stand up.

"Oh, just give it up," Trip says. "It's time for Win Number Three! Now, Tranquill, use Aerial Ace, let's go!"

As Tranquill charges for my baby, I yell to him. "Pikachu, grab Tranquil!" Pikachu grabs onto Tranquill's leg, hanging on for life. "Now, give Tranquill a throw!" Pikachu throws Tranquill and growls. "Alright! Volt Tackle!" Glowing with power, Pikachu slams right into Tranquill. I smirk, just thinking of how much damage that move did.

"Quick, Tranquill!" Trip yells. "Dodge it!" But Tranquill's already on the ground, done for.

"Tranquill is unable to battle! Pikachu's the winner!"

I smile. "Great job, Pikachu!"

He shoots me a happy glance. "Pika!"

Trip returns Tranquill. "I guess so. But you'll never be able to beat my Servine!" Servine appears in front of Trip.

"A Servine?!" I yelp.

"Pika!" Pikachu gasps.

I stare at the grass snake, which is much like Snivy. "That Servine...it's gotta be...it evolved from the Snivy Pikachu battled!"

Trip smirks. "I trained it, and it evolved. That's basic."

I growl to myself. I'm so sick of him saying things are basic. I'll show him what he can do with basic! "No way Trip's beating me this time. Pikachu, you ready to win?"

"Pika!" He nods.

"Alright!" I yell. "Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" Pikachu's tail glimmers as it turns to a silver color, all hard with iron.

"Servine, use Cut!" Servine charges at Pikachu, claws glowing. Pikachu's tail and Servine's claws collide, and it's hard to see which one did more damage. "Servine, stay on Pikachu. Now, Leaf Tornado, let's go!" Servine whips up a violent storm of leaves. They snatch Pikachu and spin him around in the swirling cloud.

I head my poor sweetie cry out, and he's tossed in front of me. "Hang in there, Pikachu!" I yelp. "Get up!" He does. "Use Volt Tackle and turn this around!" He clouds himself with electricity and charges at Servine.

"Let's finish this up by using Cut, Servine!" With a glowing claw, Servine slashes Pikachu.

My poor buddy falls to the ground, fainted and feeling sick. "No! Pikachu!"

"Pikachu's unable to battle! Servine is the winner!" Don George says.

I run to Pikachu and gather him in my arms. "That was some awesome battling. Take a good rest." Looking at me with sad yet triumphant eyes, he nods.

"You still wanna see this through?" Trip asks. "Face it. You've only got two Pokémon left, while I've got four. I'd say this match is pretty much in the bag."

I growl, holding Pikachu tighter. "I'd say you're totally wrong, since the match is never over until it's over!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds, snuggling into my arms.

I bite my lip, trying to quickly decide which Pokémon to use. I know Pidove's a Flying-type and would be super effective, but Snivy...is a girl!

"Alright!" I throw a Poké Ball. "Snivy, I choose you!" She appears in a blue light. "Snivy, Vine Whip, go!" She tries to strike Servine with the vines out of her neck, but he dodges, amusement in his eyes. "Now, use Leaf Blade!" Her tail glows and she brings it down, ready to strike Servine with it.

"Dodge and use Leaf Tornado!" Trip yells. Servine jumps out of the way and whips up a tornado of leaves. Snivy's sucked into it and is spinner around violently. She's tossed next to me, like Pikachu was.

I feel hope crushing out of me. "Snivy! No!"

"It's like I said before," Trip starts. "I trained my Snivy, and it evolved into Servine."

I glare at him. "It takes a lot more than evolving to become strong! My Snivy's gonna win, no doubt! Vine Whip, one more time!" Snivy lashes out at Servine with the vines, but he dodges them. Good. His guard is down. "Snivy, use Attract!"

Snivy blinks and sends hearts towards Servine. They surround him and his eyes are replaced by two pink hearts, resulting in him being in love with Snivy. I smirk.

Trip gasps and his eyes widen. "Snivy knows Attract?!"

I smirk, knowing the odds are in my favor now! "Snivy, use Vine Whip!" This time, Snivy smacks the sense out of Servine.

"Servine, no!" Trip yells.

"Alright! Leaf Blade, go!" I scream. Snivy brings her glowing tail onto Servine—hard.

"No! Servine!" Trip screams. I can see Servine's had enough.

"Servine is unable to battle!" Don George yells out. "Snivy is the winner!"

I cheer. "Yes! Wow, Snivy. Great job!" She smirks with her half open eyes.

"Well, wonders never cease," Trip mutters. "Using Attract was a surprise to me."

I kneel down to Snivy. "I'm gonna switch Pokémon, so you get some rest." She nods and I return her to her Poké Ball. I look at Trip. "Now that you only have three Pokémon, I'm catching up fast!"

He raises his eyebrow. "We'll see about that! Go, Frillish!" He throws a Poké Ball and a blue Pokémon comes out, floating.

I quickly take out my Pokédex and scan it. "Gotta check this out."

**Frillish, the Floating Pokémon. Frillish can construct its foes using its veil-like tentacles and numb them with poison. It is said to live in dens some five miles below sea level.**

I throw a Poké Ball. "Pidove, I choose you!" She appears. "Quick! Use Air Cutter!" She throws knives of wind and air at Frillish. If those attacks hit, they're sure to cause some damage.

"Frillish, use Protect." Trip doesn't even sound energized. Frillish covers itself with a blue light, and the Air Cutter attacks bounce off. "Water Pulse." Frillish creates a ball of water and throws it at Pidove, surrounding her and crashing her against the wall.

"Pidove!" But I know she's done.

"Pidove is unable to battle!" Don George announces. "Frillish is the winner!"

I return Pidove to her Poké Ball. "Thanks, Pidove. Take a good rest."

"Haven't you had enough?" Trip asks me. "Why don't you just quit while you're behind? For your own sake."

I growl. "I told you this battle isn't over! Snivy, I choose you!" She appears, looking confident. "Snivy, Vine Whip, go!"

I hear Iris and Cilan gasp from the side. "Oh, no! Alice, don't do it!" Iris yells.

Surprisingly, Frillish doesn't dodge. Instead, it takes the hit. "Yeah! Snivy, keep it up!" I notice Snivy's frozen. "What's the matter, Snivy?" Her body's covered in smokey black mist and her eyes give away the twisted pain she's in.

"It's obvious to me you don't know any of the basics at all," Trip says smugly. Especially if you directly attack a Pokémon like Frillish, who has Cursed Body!"

I blink. "Cursed Body?"

"Cursed Body is an ability that disables your moves if you attack it directly!" Iris screams at me. "You are such a little kid for not knowing that!" I feel myself get hot under her scolding.

"Now now, no need to get riled up," Cilan says, trying to calm her down.

I turn back to Trip. "How about trying on Leaf Storm for size?!" Snivy sends a storm of leaves towards Frillish.

"Use Protect." Once again, Frillish protects itself with that blue coating. "Now, use Night Shade." The Pokémon uses the attack, bringing my poor Snivy to her knees.

I bite my lip. "Snivy, I know you can do it!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells.

Snivy glares and forces herself to get up, glaring. "Alright! Leaf Storm!" Snivy sends another wave of leaves towards Frillish, but it dodges. "Now, use Attract!" Snivy blinks and sends hearts to Frillish, making them surround it. Suddenly, Frillish floats out of the way. "It dodged it!" I bite my lip, knowing there's only one choice left. "Okay, it's all or nothing. Snivy, use Leaf Blade!" Her tail glows. "Let's go, now!" She jumps up. "Now, finish with one shot!" She brings her tail down and a cloud forms near them. "Did it work?"

But Frillish seems fine, and Snivy's suffering from the effect of Cursed Body. I flinch.

"Use Water Pulse!" Trip yells. Frillish throws a ball of water at Snivy and it surrounds her, making her confused.

I gasp. "No! Now Snivy's confused!"

"According to plan!" Trip smirks. "Alright, Frillish! Use Hex!"

I feel air catch in my lungs in shock. "What's Hex?"

"Well, since Snivy's confused, Hex is going to cause double the damage," Trip explains smugly.

Frillish raises its arms, creates some kind of blackness, and Snivy falls, not taking anymore. I let the breath leave my body. "Snivy..."

"Snivy is unable to battle!" Don George yells out. "Frillish is the winner, and the victor is Trip!"

I kneel down to Snivy. "Snivy, are you okay? You battled really well." I return her to her Poké Ball.

Trio stands over me. "I guess Pikachu and Snivy were okay. But your other Pokémon were a complete joke." He smirks. "So was their Trainer."

Growling, I shoot up and stare him in the eye. "What was that?!"

He turns to the battle manager. "Thanks for everything, Don George. I'm leaving." He turns to walk out.

I know I'm not gonna let him get away with this! "Hey, Trip! Let's battle again someday!"

He stops. "We'll see. After all, battling is basic for a Trainer, of course." With that, he walks out of the Battle Club.

I hear Cilan and Iris come up behind me. "Better luck next time," Cilan murmurs to me.

"Until then, you'll just have to train extra hard!" Iris says. I'm silent. "Now, don't you be upset!" I'm guessing she must've seen the tear that just trickled down my cheek.

I wipe it away, smiling. "I'm not upset. Don't worry. I'm not gonna let Trip get ahead of me forever, so I'll train hard and get a lot stronger!"

Pikachu smiles. "Pika! Pika pika!" He jumps on my shoulder, nuzzling my cheek and trying to make me feel better.


	11. A Home for Dwebble!

A Home for Dwebble!

Chapter 11

A Home for Dwebble

My eyes slightly open, and I feel my head on my arms. I'm pretty sure I fell asleep, thanks to my uncontrollable hunger. I'm starving!

I open my eyes wider to see a plate in front of me, a potato salad sandwich on it. I look up to see Cilan smiling at me.

My eyes fall on the sandwich. "Huh?" I smile. "Thanks a lot!" I take a bite, the flavors of it flowing through my mouth. "Man, you make the greatest sandwiches in the whole world, Cilan."

He smiles and slightly blushes at my compliment. "Of course."

"So, Pikachu, what do you think of Cilan's cooking, anyway?" I ask my yellow Pokémon.

Pikachu, who's eating some Pokémon food, smiles. "Pika pika!" Axew joins him in the cheer.

"Axew feels the same way, too!" Iris chirps in.

Axew's head raises up and he looks into the distance. "Axew..." He suddenly gets up and walks away.

"Axew! Hey, what's the matter?" Iris follows her Dragon-type.

Pikachu follows Axew and they end up behind a rock, Pikachu talking to Axew. I catch up with them. "Uh, Pikachu, what's up?"

"Pika pika." He points over in front of us.

I turn to see a very small orange/russet colored crab-like Pokémon. It inspects a small rock with careful eyes. It looks adorable!

"Of course!" Cilan smiles. "It's a Dewbble! Although strange to see one without a rock on its back."

I take out my Pokédex. "So, it's supposed to have a rock on its back?"

**Dwebble, the Rock Inn Pokémon. After finding a suitable rock, Dwebble digs a hole in the rock's bottom, to use as a protective shell. Dwebble can make rock easier to carve by producing a liquid from its mouth. **

"I'll bet you it's just about to dig into that rock!" Iris says.

"If that's true, then we're about to witness a rare occurrence!" Cilan tells us. "What luck!"

The Dwebble starts to dig into the rock violently. I smile and stand up. "Wow! You were right!"

Iris suddenly grabs my arms and pulls me down, glaring. "If it knows we're here, it'll run away!"

Blushing with embarrassment, I swallow. "Hehe..." Avoiding her gaze, I turn back to the Dwebble, who's still digging.

"That'll become its home, too," Cilan whispers.

"So Dwebble builds its own house. Awesome!" I stare in awe at the small creature.

Dwebble digs into the rock and spits a white liquid into the rock from its mouth. Iris gasps. "Something's coming out of its mouth!"

I almost face-palm. Didn't she listen to the Pokédex entry about a liquid coming from its mouth?! Rolling my eyes, I take my Pokédex back out and play that part again.

**Dwebble can make rock easier to carve by producing a liquid from its mouth. **

"How amazing is that?" I stare dreamily at the small crab. _It's so cute!_

"It sure looks like hard work," Iris comments.

"Well, since it will protect Dwebble from their enemies, they have to do a really good job," Cilan says. The Dwebble stops carving and smiles with triumph. Cilan gasps. "All done!"

The Dwebble crawls into the rock, but suddenly crawls back out, shaking his head. "Why didn't Dwebble stay inside?" Iris asks.

"Probably not satisfied just yet," Cilan says.

The Dwebble makes a few adjustments to the rock and smiles. "Looks like a perfect fit this time," I say. The Dwebble crawls back in and lifts the rock on its back. It looks so happy!

"And that's what a normal Dwebble looks like," Cilan tells us.

"Looks like a little moving cream puff!" Iris squeals. "It's so cute!"

Suddenly, the ground rumbles and three creatures come out. I realize they're all Dwebble, too. "Look at all those Dwebble! Awesome!"

"Maybe they're friends!" Iris says.

Suddenly, two Dewbble attack the smaller Dewbble. I gasp. "What's that all about?!" Dwebble uses Protect and hides in its shell to protect itself from the two Dwebbles' Slash attacks. "I wonder what those two are attacking Dwebble for!"

"Pika!" Pikachu growls.

Dwebble comes out of his rock and uses the move Slash, but the two Dwebble block it with Protect. The third Dwebble, the leader, knocks into the small Dwebble. Dwebble's rock is knocked off his back, and the third Dwebble smirks. It takes the rock and puts it on his back on top of the other rock, and glues it on with the liquid from its mouth.

"Hey! That's the house Dwebble just made!" Iris says.

"And three Dwebble against one isn't fair!" I growl.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells.

I stand up. "Knock it off, you three!" The Dwebble smirk and all disappear underground. Dwebble follows them. "You go and get your house back!"

"Now Pansage, come on out!" Cilan's Pokémon partner comes out. "Pansage, I want you to use Dig and go help Dwebble." Nodding, Pansage disappears underground.

After a while, the ground rumbles again. I expect to see the three Dwebble, coming to return the rock they stole from the first small Dwebble, but instead, Pansage comes into sight.

"Alright, Pansage," Cilan says. "What happened?"

"Pansage. Pansage pan," he says. The ground rumbles again, and a small Dwebble comes out. It doesn't have a rock.

"That's the first Dwebble!" Iris realizes.

"But it's still missing the rock," I whisper. He looks at us with the saddest of eyes. The poor little guy!

Cilan walks over to the Dwebble and kneels down. "We saw everything. Sorry about your house." Afraid he's an enemy, Dwebble shrieks and runs off, scared out of his skin.

"Where's Dwebble going?" Iris asks.

I start to chase after it. "Hey! Slow down!"

While we run after Dwebble, Iris hops along the rocks and jumps in front of Dwebble, cutting off his path. She kneels down to the scared creature.

"You don't have to be afraid of us," she says. Dwebble runs away towards me and Cilan, but soon realizes he's cornered.

I hold up my hands. "Just relax, Dwebble."

"We're not here to hurt you," Cilan tells him.

Pikachu jumps off my shoulder and looks at Dwebble. "Pika pika."

But Dwebble's too scared to listen. His right claw glows with power and uses Slash on Pikachu. But being the quick mouse he is, Pikachu dodges, and Dwebble hits a nearby rock instead. The rock breaks into little pieces, and one of the pieces flies towards Pansage and catches him in the forehead.

"Oh, no! Pansage!" Cilan runs to his Pokémon.

Dwebble's eyes widen. "Dwebble?!"

Cilan kneels down to his poor injured Pansage. "Are you alright?"

Dwebble scurries over to Pansage and Cilan. "Dweb... Dwebble."

After spraying the medicine of a Potion on Pansage's wound, Iris takes a look at it. "It doesn't look serious."

"Yeah..." But I can tell Cilan's still worried.

Dwebble keeps apologizing to Pansage. "Dwebble, dweb! Dwebble!"

Pansage smiles. "Pansage, pan."

"We know you didn't really wanna hurt anybody," I say. "Of course!"

"You must've been upset about having your home stolen," Cilan says.

Dwebble hangs his little head. "Dweb. Dwebble."

"I know what!" Iris says. "You can make yourself a new home!" Dwebble looks a little horrified, and shakes his head violently. "You want that home back."

"Of course, since Dwebble worked so hard to make it," Cilan says.

Iris looks at the little crab. "You really love it, don't you?" Dwebble nods.

"It obviously means the world to Dwebble," Cilan comments.

I smile. "Sure! You can't just give up and walk away. I know what. We'll help you get it back."

"Pika pika?" Pikachu adds.

Dwebble turns away, shaking his head and refusing. He starts to bury himself underground and disappears.

"Hold on, Dwebble!" But he's gone.

"No matter," Cilan says. "I say let's find those thieves!" Iris and I nod in agreement.

By sunset, we're searching for the three Dwebble. Pidove flies over me, cooing.

"Thanks, Pidove," I call to her. "So, did you find those Dwebble?" She shakes her head. "Man!" I groan.

The ground shakes and Pansage appears, looking sad. "No luck down there, either," Cilan speaks for him.

"Where could those three have gone?" Iris wonders.

Dwebble comes out of the ground, looking sad and defeated. I can tell he's been searching for the thieves, too. His rock is still missing, too.

"It's late," Cilan says after a while. "Why don't we have a nice dinner?"

I smile and nod. "Sounds good."

Cilan turns to the small Dwebble. "You too, Dwebble." Dwebble blinks.

"What do you think, Dwebble?" I ask the crab. "Doesn't Cilan make some awesome Pokémon food?"

Dwebble, whose face is buried in the food, smiles. "Dwebble! Dweb!"

I notice Pansage isn't looking too good. He eats the food slowly and swallows, like his throat hurts. He suddenly falls back.

Cilan's eyes widen. "Pansage! What's wrong?!" He runs to his Pansage, takes him in his arms and places a hand on his forehead. "You're burning up!"

"Could be from getting hit by that rock today," I say, sympathy clouding my voice. Poor Pansage!

Dwebble looks extremely guilty. "Dwebble..."

"I'm afraid I don't have any more Potion," Cilan says.

Determined to save Pansage, I step up. "You just leave it to me. I know every herbal remedy there is! We just need to find some out here to reduce fever." With that, Pikachu and I run into the forest to look for some herbs.

In a while, after searching for the plants, Pikachu taps on my shoulder, holding a few leaves. "Pika?" he asks.

Smiling, I hug him. "Great job, Pikachu!" I take the herbs and we head back to our camp. I mash up the herbs and make them into a pulpy substance. "All done!" I take some on a spoon and hold it to Pansage, who's still in Cilan's arms. "Here, Pansage. Open up!" He weakly opens his mouth. "That's it!" He lets me put the spoon in his mouth. "It might be a little bitter," I warn him. He gives me a small nod and closes his eyes. "A good night's sleep and Pansage will be as good as new!"

Cilan gives me a warm smile. "Thanks so much, Alice." I blush at his praise.

"That was awesome!" Iris exclaims.

Smirking, I turn to her. "Of course! What did you expect?" She can't possibly call me a kid after saving Pansage.

She smiles at Pikachu. "Thanks, Pikachu. You helped, too." Pikachu coos.

The next morning, I wake up to see Pansage, jumping up and down with excitement and energy. There's no sign of any fever, and the red mark on his forehead seems like a bad memory.

"I'm so happy that your fever's all gone!" I sigh with relief.

"Pan! Pansage," Pansage says, smiling.

Cilan turns to me. "And it's all thanks to the herbal remedy you whipped up, Alice." I blush crazily.

"Cilan's right," Iris says.

Dwebble crawls over to Pansage. "Dweb. Dwebble." He still looks a little guilty.

Axew hops down from Iris's hair and cheers. "Axew's happy, too," she says.

Cilan looks at Pansage. "Dwebble was up all night watching over you, Pansage."

His eyes widen. "Pansage?"

Dwebble sheepishly nods. "Dwebble."

"Alright then, Dwebble," Cilan starts. "Let's go get your house back!"

Just as planned, the three thieving Dwebble appear from the ground.

"Okay. There they are!" I say to Dwebble.

Pansage comes out of the ground, looking triumphant. "Excellent work, Pansage," Cilan says.

Seeming to realize what will happen, the three Dwebble scurry off, Axew running after them.

"Don't let them get away!" Iris yells to Axew.

Axew looks for them, and finally calls out. "Axew! Axew!"

I turn to see the three Dwebble. "Good work, Axew! You three give Dwebble's home back right now!" I glare at the three Dwebble.

"Dweb! Dwebble!" The small crab glares at the three.

One Dwebble lunges for Dwebble, but the small creature dodges. But this time, the second Dwebble hits the crab with the rock on its back.

I gasp. "Dwebble! No!" Dwebble falls to the ground, trying to stand up.

"Dwebble's outnumbered three to one!" Iris says.

I turn to my buddy on my shoulder. "Pikachu? Dwebble needs help!"

He nods. "Pikachu!"

He jumps off my shoulder and runs forward, but Dwebble stops him, shaking his head. I raise my eyebrow. "Dwebble, do you really think you can get your home back all by yourself?"

He nods determinedly. "Dwebble!"

I smile. "Gotcha. You go for it!"

The first Dwebble uses Slash, and Dwebble does the same. But instead of both attacks colliding, like they should, the first Dwebble lands the hit.

"Uh-oh," Cilan mutters. "With no rock on it's back..."

"...That leaves Dwebble defenseless!" I finish.

Dwebble gets up and uses Slasb again, but the opposing Dwebble crawls under its shell and uses Protect. The third Dwebble, the leader, turns away and lunges for Dwebble, hitting the poor creature in the stomach with its rock.

I gasp as Dwebble falls onto the ground, the small swirls on his eyes. The three Dwebble disappear into the ground, leaving Dwebble. "Dweb. Dwebble..."

Once Dwebble has recovered, I turn to him. "Taking on all three of them at one time is impossible, don't you see that?" I ask.

Dwebble hangs his head. "Dwebble..."

I cross my arms. "You need to be able to split them up."

"At least let us help with that!" Iris pleads. Dwebble reluctantly nods.

I try to think. To draw the Dewbble out from hiding, we'll need some bait, but then need to split them up so Dwebble can take them on all at different times. That way, it'll be a fair fight.

Cilan smiles. "I know! We'll use my Pokémon food!"

Soon, we have three bowls in a circle, all three filled with Pokémon food. A string is tied to each bowl, and each of us hide behind a different rock. Pikachu hide behind the first, Iris and Axew hide behind the second, and Cilan, Pansage and Dwebble hide behind the third.

In no time, the three Dwebble appear and start digging into the bowls. I roll my eyes and smile at how dumb they are. _Can't they see it's a trap?_

"Alright!" Cilan yells. "Now get going!"

Smiling, Pikachu, Axew and Pansage start pulling the bowls away in different directions. Pansage pulls the bowl with one of the following Dwebble towards us.

Dwebble jumps for the other Dwebble and they battle. Once Dwebble knows he has to form a plan, he starts leading the other Dwebble into the rocky area.

"Dwebble's luring it into the rocks," Iris realizes.

I nod. "Yeah. The rocks protect Dwebble since it doesn't have a rock of its own."

Cilan smiles. "That Dwebble is one smart Pokémon!"

Soon enough, after using many X-Scissor attacks and Slash attacks, Dwebble defeats his opponent. I cheer. "Dwebble, way to go! Awesome!"

"I have to say, those X-Scissor and Slash attacks really make for one spicy combination!" Cilan compliments.

Iris yells to Axew. "Alright! Let's do it!"

Axew comes in, running with the second Dwebble hot on his tail. Dwebble soon defeats the second Dwebble by getting it stuck in a narrow passage by its rock.

I jump up. "Yeah! Now the head Dwebble's the only one left!"

We find the leader munching on the Pokémon food in the bowl. It doesn't seem to notice us.

"Alright, Dwebble!" Cilan shouts. "The time has come for you to take your home back!"

"Dwebble!" Dwebble yells. The third Dwebble stops eating and turns for his two followers, but notices it's alone.

Iris smirks. "In case you hadn't noticed, you're all by yourself!"

"Which makes it fair and square!" Cilan says.

I smile. "Alright, Dwebble. Go!"

Dwebble attacks the other Dwebble, and prepares to use Slash, but stops once the opponent turns the rock towards him. He hesitates, which causes the other Dwebble to attack brutally.

I frown. "Why did Dwebble stop attacking?!"

Cilan gasps. "I get it! Dwebble doesn't wanna damage its own home!"

But amazingly, Dwebble uses a move called Shell Smash, which raises its attack power, and follows up with an X-Scissor attack, which results in knocking the two rocks off the lead Dwebble's back. With no rock on its back, the other Dwebble buries itself underground.

I smile. "Nice job!"

"Dwebble!" The small and now happy crab crawls back into his rock and cheers.

"You did it!" Iris says. "Good job!"

I smile at Dwebble. "You've got your house back!"

"And you did it yourself," Cilan says. "You can be proud."

When sunset comes, I feel sad that we have to part ways with Dwebble. I wish he could come with us.

"Alright then, Dwebble," Cilan sighs. Is he sad? "Time for us to move on."

I force a smile. Saying goodbye to Dwebble is really hard. "See you again! Take care!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu smiles at him.

"And make sure your home isn't stolen again!" Iris adds.

With that, we turn and start to walk away. I suddenly hear the small tap of claws on the ground behind us. "Dwebble!" We turn to see Dwebble smiling.

"Dwebble?" Cilan asks. "What? Is there something wrong?"

He smiles. "Dweb. Dwebble dweb."

My eyes widen and I turn to Cilan. "You know what? I think Dwebble wants to go with you, Cilan."

His own emerald eyes widen and he looks back to Dwebble. "You do?"

"Dwebble!" the crab cheers.

"I get it," Cilan says. "Getting your home back all by yourself was heavy and fair, and worrying about Pansage was delicate and light! Fantastic!" He smiles. "The perfect Pokémon for me! We're a good match!" He throws a Poké Ball into the air, and Dwebble jumps up, clicking it open and getting sucked in. The ball clicks shut when it hits the ground, and Cilan picks it up. "Such exquisite taste. My Dwebble!"

I smile. "Wow, Cilan. That's great!"

"Thank you." He turns to Pansage. "Pansage, what do you think of all this?"

His Pokémon smiles. "Pansage!"

"Axew!" Axew adds.

Iris giggles. "Yeah, it is great!"

I look out into the sunset. "Yeah! Now, let's all head to Nacrene City together!"

"Pikachu!" my buddy cheers.


	12. Here Comes the Trubbish Squad!

Here Comes the Trubbish Squad!

Chapter 12

Here Comes the Trubbish Squad!

As the sun beats down on me and my two friends, I find myself becoming tired. I'm about to ask Cilan how long it is until the next town or city, but I hear a noise.

I turn to see a group of five children, all on bicycles, and one boy having a wagon on his. In the wagon is a green creature that looks like a garbage bag.

I blink. "Whoa. Check it out."

I also see two women chasing after the children. "Everyone slow down!" the younger one yells.

"Stop those kids, please!" the older one shouts to us.

The boy with the wagon smirks. "Enemy sight is straight ahead! Prepare to attack!"

"Yes, sir!" the kids shout. I'm guessing the boy's the leader.

I blink. "What do they mean 'attack'?"

"All bombs ready!" Each kid has a mud ball in their hands. "And...fire!"

Immediately, the kids throw the mud at us. Iris jumps out of the way and onto the fence post next to us while Cilan and I are hit in the face with the mud balls. I fall to the ground, my hat on the ground. Pikachu coughs, trying to get the mud out of his mouth.

"Attack successful!" the boy says. I notice my hat's been sweeped up by the Pokémon in the wagon.

I gasp. "Oh, no! They've got my hat!"

I watch as the kids ride off, along with my hat in their possession. I growl. I hate not wearing my hat! My hair is so messy without it! And I really don't want Cilan to see me without my hat on.

Iris jumps off the fence post as Cilan and I stand up. "What's with those kids, anyway?!"

"Axew!" her Dragon-type growls.

Cilan wipes his face with a cloth. "Not exactly innocent pranksters."

I growl. "Yeah, and I'm mad!"

"Pika!" Pikachu growls.

"I'm so sorry!" a voice behind us says. We turn to see the two women. "Those children are from my kindergarten class," the younger one says. "Forgive them, please!"

The older woman gives us a sympathetic look. "We're very sorry." I notice she has a hint of southern accent in her voice.

They offer to take us inside the small nursery behind them, and we accept. When their backs are turned, I'm about to follow them, but someone grabs my arm gently. I turn and expect to see Iris, but instead, I see Cilan.

"Hang on," he says. "You have a little mud on your face."

My hands fly to my face, trying to cover it. "Really?!" _I don't want him to see me like this!_

He smiles. "Don't worry. I got it." Taking my face in his hands, he gently wipes away any existing mud and dirt on my face.

I blink at how close our faces are right now. It would be so easy to just simply lean in and gently kiss him on his perfect pair of lips. All I have to do is lean up and...

Iris interrupts us. "Uh, Cilan? She doesn't have any mud on her face."

He blushes crazily, and I do, too. _Was that just an excuse to be close to me?_I blush harder at the thought. Instead, I give him a small smile and follow the two women inside the nursery.

Once we're inside, I admire all the small Eggs in containers on the shelves. Iris gasps. "Wow! Look at all these Pokémon Eggs!"

"The nourishing spirit I find here warms my heart," Cilan says.

The older of the two women chuckles. "You're standing in my Day Care. The name's Karena. This is my granddaughter, Daniela." She motions to the younger woman next to her.

Daniela smiles. "Hello, there. And this is the kindergarten classroom where I reach."

I smile. "Hi. My name's Alice. And this is my partner, Pikachu."

Pikachu seems to wag his tail. "Pikachu!"

"My name's Iris," the ten-year-old girl says.

"I'm Cilan, a Pokémon Connoisseur," the emerald-eyed boy says politely.

Daniela looks guilty. "I'm really sorry about what happened today. You see, the children in my class found a Trubbish just yesterday, and decided to bring it here."

I blink. "Trubbish? So that's the name of that Pokémon they had?"

"Pika," Pikachu murmurs in a quiet voice.

"Yes," Daniela says. "And they found it at a junkyard located on the edge of town."

I take out my Pokédex and type in the Pokémon's name.

**Trubbish, the Trash Bag Pokémon. Trubbish prefer to live in dirty places like garbage dumps. It is said they were born when a chemical reaction occurred between an abandoned trash bag and industrial waste. **

"It must like garbage," Iris says.

I put my Pokédex away, frowning. "Yeah, but my hat's not garbage, you know."

"Pikachu," my yellow mouse says.

"It's a Pokémon with quite a unique recipe," Cilan says.

"Unique, yes, but when I first saw Trubbish, I was anything but excited," Daniela tells us. She quickly tells the story of how the kids brought Trubbish to her, begging to keep it, but she refused, and took Trubbish back to the junkyard where the kids found it.

Karena finishes the story. "Daniela brought Trubbish back to the junkyard where the kids first found it. But we woke up today to find something you wouldn't believe."

I blink. "What are you talking about?"

They lead us outside in the playground, where a HUGE pile of junk in a great line lays just in front of a small treehouse. I gasp at the sight.

"Pika?!" I can tell Pikachu can't believe it.

Neither can I. "What's that?!"

"The children and Trubbish make this awful thing out of all the junk they found," Daniela says.

"It has the recipe of a secret base," Cilan tells us.

I smile. These kids really know how to construct! "Whoa! A secret base? Man, those kids are good!"

Iris glares at me. "Alice, you're not supposed to be impressed! Sheesh. You know, you're a littler kid than they are."

I growl and glare, turning away from her. "Gee, thanks."

"That pile of junk could collapse at any moment!" Daniela informs us.

Cilan nods. "I agree."

"I better do something quick," Daniela mutters.

Karena turns to is. "Would you mind helping Daniela clean this up?"

I smile. "No problem. Of course we'll help."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu agrees.

"I'm in!" Iris says.

"Me, too," Cilan adds, smiling.

Daniela looks relieved. "That's so nice! Thank you all!"

Suddenly, the curtain hanging as a door in the treehouse opens, and the small boy who seems to be the leader reveals himself, the other kids following. "Look. This is the Trubbish Squad's super secret base, and grown-ups aren't allowed to come inside!"

The kids nod. "Right! No grown-ups allowed!"

"Trubbish Squad's super secret base?" Iris asks.

"They're just playing games," Cilan says.

Iris rolls her eyes. "Just like kids do."

I smile. These kids remind me of myself when I was their age. Although I never befriended a Pokémon until I got Pikachu at the age of ten, I was imaginative and thought of many games to play.

"Class, come on!" Daniela calls to them. "You need to stop these silly games right now!"

I step forward. "I know. Let me talk to them. I played games like this all the time. They were lots of fun, so I kinda understand what they're talking about."

Karena smiles at me. "Alice, that's a great idea." She turns to Daniela, who looks a little unsure, and gives her a nod.

I smile. "Alright. Leave it to me. Come on, Pikachu."

"Pikachu!" He jumps off my shoulder.

We start climbing the pile of junk, and I realize that it's not as sturdy as it looks. The furniture is loosely stacked together, and I can barely keep still while climbing. But I force myself to keep going.

"Intruder alert!" the lead boy shouts. "Alright then, Trubbish! Go! Attack!"

"Trubbish!" The Pokémon jumps up and shoots mud from its mouth at me and Pikachu.

"Pika!" Pikachu cries.

"Great job, Trubbish!" the boy praises it. "Everybody, fire!" The kids throw more mud balls at us, and I yelp.

I shield my face from any more oncoming mud balls. "Stop! I wanna talk to you guys!" Suddenly, Pikachu and I slide down a small ramp and land in a tire. I cringe at the pain I'm in. "Man, that hurt!"

I'm met with a small wooden sword in my face. "Don't move." I look at the little boy, who's holding the sword.

Iris yells at me from the other side of the trash heap. "What's going on? Alice, what are you doing?!"

How can I explain that I'm being held hostage by kindergarteners?! "Uh...they've kinds got us both trapped."

"Pika!" Pikachu adds.

"Trapped?!" Iris yelps. "Will the two of you pull yourselves together?!"

I glare. "Sure! Just give me a little bit more time!"

The leader glares at me. "The prisoner will stay silent!" Two of the five kids suddenly spray me and Pikachu in the face with water guns.

I yelp. "Okay! Okay!"

I'm taken into their treehouse, where I try to take in all the scenery inside. "Wow! I'm impressed!" I smile. "Cool!"

"Pika," my buddy on my shoulder mutters.

"You guys made this all by yourselves?" I ask, turning to the five kids.

One girl nods. "Uh-huh. With a whole lotta help from Trubbish."

"Trubbish!" the trash bag-like creature says, smiling.

I'm really impressed with these kids. I mean, they're in kindergarten, and know how to make a whole treehouse and wall out of junk. I never learned how to build a treehouse until I was nine. "That's awesome!"

"Pika," Pikachu agrees.

The leader of the kids glares at the girl. "Hey! You're not allowed to be friendly with the enemy!"

The girl looks sad. "I'm sorry, Avey!"

I turn to the boy. "Wow. So your name is really Avey?"

He glares at me. "Then name is Avery, to you!"

"Okay." I introduce myself. "I'm Alice, and this is Pikachu."

"Pika! Pikachu!" My buddy smiles at the kids.

"I've never seen a real Pikachu before!" one of the girls exclaims.

"Pikachu's cute!" the second boy says.

The third boy comes up to me. "Mind if I pet it?"

I smile. "Nah. No prob."

Pikachu jumps off my shoulder and wags his tail. "Pika." The kids gather around him and start petting him and pulling on his cheeks gently. He seems to love the attention.

I turn to Avery, who's not petting my Pikachu. "The thing is, we don't really wanna be enemies. We really wanna talk, that's all."

Avery hesitates. "Really?"

"You bet!" I assure him.

"Would it be okay if I pet Pikachu, too?" he asks after a while. I nod. Pikachu loves when people pet him. The only thing he doesn't like is when somebody other than me touches his lightning bolt-shaped tail. Avery kneels down. "Hey, Pikachu. Over here!" He pulls on Pikachu's tail.

Uh-oh!

Pikachu seems to get annoyed, and the kids start fighting over him. I've gotta think of a way to save them from a future Thunderbolt!

"Hey, guys! Take it easy!" I swallow. "If you don't, you might just get zapped."

The kids yelp and jump back as Pikachu gets in a position to shock them. But after a while, Pikachu opens one eye and smiles, tilting his head. "Pikachu!"

I pick him up. "Here's the deal. Pikachu is an Electric-type Pokémon, and knows how to use an awesome move called Thunderbolt. Right, Pikachu?"

"Pika." Suddenly, he shocks me with a powerful bolt of lightning. I yelp, the pain searing through my body.

Once he stops, I look at the kids. "Pretty intense, right?" Pikachu jumps out of my arms and in front of me on the floor. "See? Pikachu's cute and strong."

"Pikachu!" he says.

Trubbish comes forward. "Trubbish."

Pikachu looks taken aback. "Pika."

"Trub!" Trubbish smiles, and I'm guessing he's trying to look cute, like Pikachu.

I'm speechless. "Uh...'kay, you're cute, too, I guess." I smile. "Of course you're cute."

The kids gather around Trubbish. "You bet Trubbish is cute!" Avery says.

"It's obvious to me you guys like that Trubbish a lot, don't you?" I ask.

"Yeah!" the kids say in unison. "We love Trubbish!"

I smile. "Got it!"

Avery hands me my hat, which was on his head the whole time. "Here, Alice. I want you to have your hat back. Sorry, big sister."

I'm touched by this kid's cuteness and apology. He reminds me so much of myself when I was his age. "Oh." I blink. "Thanks a lot." Smiling, I take my hat and put it back on my head. The children laugh.

After a while, I decide to bring up a more important subject.

"Come on, you guys," I start. "I say stop this. Go on and make things right with your teacher. What do you all say?"

"Pika?" Pikachu adds.

"I can go with you when you say you're sorry," I tell them.

Avery glares at me. "We didn't do anything wrong!"

"Avery is right!" one girl yells.

"It's our teacher's fault!" Avery screams.

"Yeah! It's Daniela's fault!" the kids cry out.

I blink. "Is that because she told you to take Trubbish back to the junkyard?"

Avery nods. "Yeah. And when we said no, she took Trubbish back and dumped it!"

"Trubbish isn't a bad Pokémon at all!" the lead girl says.

"Yeah, but Trubbish didn't do anything wrong!" another boy adds.

I shrug. "Okay, but it can get pretty stinky."

"Pika," Pikachu agrees.

The lead girl nods. "Yeah, it is stinky."

Avery glares at her. "It does not stink!"

"He's right!" the girls says hurriedly. "It doesn't stink at all!"

"Trub!" Suddenly, Trubbish opens its mouth and lets out a puff of air. The minute it hits my nose, I cough, trying not to breathe it in.

Avery and the kids cover their faces. "Trubbish doesn't stink!" Avery yells.

"Trubbish doesn't stink one bit!" the kids shout.

I'm sorry, but I can't help myself. I've had enough of this! "Trubbish stinks!" I yelp. I crawl out of the treehouse, coughing and trying to get the smell out of my system. I breathe and turn to Pikachu. "Man, that is pungent!"

"Pika!" Pikachu chokes out.

"No, it's not!" I hear Avery scream. I turn around and see him standing beside Trubbish. "Trubbish, everything is just fine."

"But Avery," I protest. I crawl over to him and Trubbish. I turn to the creature. "Trubbish, isn't Avery a great buddy?"

He smiles. "Trubbish!"

Suddenly, I hear a loud rumble. I look down at the ground. "What's that?!" Coming from the ground, a small Sandile pokes his head out. I realize it has red sunglasses on.

"Intruder alert!" Avery yells. "Everyone, prepare to attack!"

"Let's go!" The kids follow Avery onto the ground, ready to attack.

I'm silent. "The Sandile with sunglasses..." I gasp, remembering that's the Sandile Iris and I saw when we were on our way to Accumula Town. "I remember that Sandile!"

I jump down next to the kids on the ground, where they stare at the Sandile. Suddenly, the creature surrounds itself with pointy stones and they fly at the children.

I gasp. "Look out! It's Stone Edge! Everyone, move out!" The kids run out of the way just in time, and the stones fly at me. Luckily, they hit the ground instead of my flesh.

"Time for a Mud Bomb Counterattack!" Avery shouts. The kids throw their mud balls at the Sandile. But instead, the Sandile again uses Stone Edge.

Trubbish growls, jumps up and spits poison into the air, which scatters along the ground in little spots. I gasp. "That's Toxic Spikes!" Sure enough, when Sandile steps on one, he's frozen with pain. "Now, Pikachu, use Iron Tail on Sandile, let's go!" Pikachu's cute tail turns to dangerous iron and he brings it down on Sandile harshly. Trubbish shoots a blast of mud at Sandile, throwing it back. "Trubbish used Sludge!"

Avery smiles. "We did it!" The kids cheer in their victory.

The lead girl turns to me. "We really did it, didn't we, Alice?"

I nod. "Yup. Sure did!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu cheers with the kids.

Avery looks so triumphant. "Yeah! Looks like the Trubbish Squad's done it again!"

The kids and I cheer in unison. "Yeah!"

I turn to Pikachu, who's now perched on my shoulder. "You know, this whole thing is turning into a lot of fun!" And I'm not ashamed to admit it.

He nods in agreement. "Pikachu!"

Suddenly, four people come up from the junk heap. We see Karena, Daniela, Iris and Cilan.

"Children!" Daniela yells. "We need to talk this over together!"

"And Alice, what do you mean by joining up with them?!" Iris screams at me.

I roll my eyes. I don't have to explain myself to her. She's ten, while I'm fifteen. "Well, you see, one thing led to another," I say.

"Pikachu." I can tell Pikachu's smiling.

"Now look!" Daniela screams at the children. "Just how long do you intend to stay in this junk?! "

"We're gonna stay in here until you say we can keep Trubbish!" Avery replies boldly.

Daniela glares. "I'm very sorry, but that's impossible! Please try to understand!"

"I will not!" Avery yells.

"We won't, either!" another boy says.

I speak up. "Come on, Daniela. Please give them a chance to tell you what they wanna tell you." If she knew about the Sandile attack, I bet she'd look t Trubbish a different way.

"Now Alice, please, will you stay out of this?" Daniela shouts.

I flinch. "Oh, man," I mutter.

"Remember, this is my kindergarten class!" Daniela tells me.

I glare at her. "But it's their kindergarten class, too!" Now I know I've really pushed it.

Daniela glares at me. "It's my job to protect the children at all costs! And that means I've got no choice but to force Trubbish to leave." I realize there's a Poké Ball in her hand. "Deerling, come help me."

A small Deerling appears at her command. "Deerling!"

I run forward and in front of the kids. "Then I guess I'll just have to take you on! Now, Pikachu, let's do this!"

"Pika!" He jumps off my shoulder and onto the ground.

Surprised gasps erupt from my friends, Daniela and Karena. "Huh?! What are you doing?!" Daniela shouts at me.

I smirk. "I want everyone to know I'm part of the Trubbish Squad, too!" I won't let these kids down.

"Let's hear it for Alice!" one boy shouts. The kids cheer for me.

Daniela hesitates, but glares at me. "If that's what you want. Alright! Deerling, Tackle, let's go!"

Reluctantly, Deerling charges for Pikachu, and unfortunately, lands a critical hit. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" I yell. He lets a stream of lightning out towards Deerling.

"Dodge that!" Deerling dodges. "Now use Tackle one more time!"

"Dodge it, Pikachu! Quick!" I yell to him. In a split second, he dodges, and Deerling's head clashes with one of the pieces of furniture in the junk heap.

Karena gasps. "Deerling, don't move, no matter what! Otherwise, that mountain of junk is gonna collapse!" I gasp to realize she's right. The pile of junk rumbles and threatens to fall. "Daniela, Alice, forget this battle at once!" She climbs over the wall of junk and starts running to the kids.

I gasp and turn to them. "Okay, everyone. Get away, and fast!" I run over to Deerling and help hold up the furniture. If we let go of it, the whole heap could topple onto all of us.

"Alice!" Cilan yells. I hear him and Iris jump down from the pile next to me.

I turn to them. "Get the kids!"

Iris nods. "Right!" They run towards the kids, and I turn back to holding up the piece of furniture.

I hear Daniela yell to Avery. "This is dangerous! We have to get out of here!"

"No!" Avery protests. "I'm gonna stay right here with Trubbish, and that's that!"

"But please, Avery!" Daniela pleads. "You've got to listen to me! It's not safe!"

"No!" Avery screams.

I hear Daniela gasp. "Look out!" I hear a sickening crunch, and turn to see her, blocking Avery from getting crushed by a large piece of furniture. "Please, Avery! Do it for me?"

Avery blinks. "Daniela..."

I feel my arms give out. I yelp at the pain I'm in. "Hurry!" I scream. "Get out of here! It's gonna collapse!"

"Hurry! Quick!" I hear Karena yell to them.

My arms shake at the weight I hold up. I open one eye to see my hands becoming red. Sweat slicks off my forehead, and I whimper. "I can't...keep...this...up!" I yelp.

Suddenly, a blast of mud shoots at the furniture, and it's blasted away. My hands feel relaxed now, and I pant heavily. I turn to see Trubbish.

I smile. "Thanks, Trubbish!" He nods and shoots more Sludge attacks at the shaking pieces of junk that threaten us. "Wow! You just saved all of us!"

"Deerling!" Deerling smiles.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"That Trubbish is good!" I hear Iris say from the treehouse.

Trubbish smiles sheepishly. "Trubbish!"

"We're all really, really sorry," Avery says. "It's all our fault!"

"Yeah," the kids say. "We're really sorry."

Daniela smiles. "It's alright. Really."

"But Daniela..." I realize he's crying.

Daniela kneels down to his level. "Avery, I'm sorry, too. I wasn't a good listener. You're all okay, thank goodness."

"Daniela!" The kids gather around her and hug her.

I smile. "So, see now? They love Trubbish. Won't you please think about it again? Let Trubbish stay. Who would take better care of Trubbish than your class?"

Karena smiles at Daniela. "Well, what's it gonna be?"

Daniela looks at the children, and then turns to Trubbish, who looks nervous. "Trubbish, tell me. Would you like to be part of our class?"

Trubbish's eyes widen. "Trubbish?!" He smiles joyfully. "Trubbish!"

The kids gather around the Pokémon, cheering and petting it. He seems to soak up the attention, and seems to love it.

Karena speaks up. "A Trubbish will stop releasing its smelly breath the more friendly it becomes with people. Of course, it all depends on how well you raise it."

We all blink. She knew this information all along...and kept it to herself?! She didn't tell us?!

"You knew this fact about Trubbish all along?" Cilan asks, emerald eyes widening.

"Well, I do run a Day Care, after all," Karena points out.

"Why in the world didn't you tell us that in the first place?!" Iris yelps, voicing my thoughts.

Karena smiles. "You have to find your own way, whether you're raising kids or Pokémon. It's all the same." She chuckles.

"Oh, dear. Grandma..." Daniela groans.

When nightfall comes, all of us, including our Pokémon, clean up the huge pile of junk. I smile to my Pokémon, who seem exhausted, but keep working. "Keep it up, you guys. Just a little bit more."

"Alice, why do we have to do all the cleaning?!" Iris complains.

"Well, I'd much rather be cooking," Cilan confesses.

I smile to them. "Come on! It's for the kids and Trubbish!" I set down the piece of junk I hold in my arms. "So, I say we get everything all cleaned up by morning!"

Trubbish smiles. "Trubbish!"

The next morning, we say our goodbyes to Karena, Daniela, and the children, along with their new partner, Trubbish. "I can't thank you enough for what you've done," Daniela says.

Karena holds out a case to me. "Here, Alice. It's a little thank-you gift from me." I gasp at what's in the case.

A Pokémon Egg.

"It's an Egg!" Iris gasps.

"But you'll just have to wait until it hatches to find out what it is," Karena tells us.

Smiling, I take the case carefully. "This is great! Thank you!"

"All I ask is that you raise it well, okay?" Karena asks.

I nod. "You bet I will!"

"Hey, Alice!" Avery says. "Come back and play sometime!"

The lead girl nods. "Yeah! Don't forget you're part of the Trubbish Squad!"

"Trub!" Trubbish cheers.

I smile at them. "Someday, we'll all have a battle, too." The kids cheer.

Waving goodbye to them, and with the case with the Egg in my hands safely, my friends and I continue on the road towards Nacrene City, where I just know a new adventure awaits for us.


	13. Minccino—Neat and Tidy!

Minccino—Neat and Tidy!

Chapter 13

Minccino—Neat and Tidy

As my friends and I walk along a beautiful blue river. With the sweat coming down on my forehead, I want nothing more than to just swim in it and cool off.

A voice stops us. "Wait, everyone!" I turn to see a blonde girl, running towards us. "Please hold on a sec!" She trips over a small rock and stumbles forward, trying to regain her balance. But she smashes into me and Cilan, knocking us into the river.

Head first, I fall into the beautiful water. Pikachu's still on my shoulder! I swim to the surface and gasp for air. "Pikachu!" I yelp. He's not on my shoulder anymore! "Cilan!"

Cilan's head comes up from the water. I sigh with relief, thankful he's alright. I turn back and look around frantically for my yellow buddy. He can't swim very well! _He could drown!_

"Pikachu! Pikachu! Where are you, buddy?!" A shaking, soaking yellow head comes out of the water and I wrap him in my arms. "Oh, thank Arceus you're aright! I was so worried!" I spit out water, which got into my mouth. "Ugh! What the heck?!" I glare at the blond girl. "Thanks to you, Pikachu could've drowned!"

She cringes. "I'm so, so sorry!"

Rolling my eyes, I call out Snivy. "Snivy! I need your help!" She appears.

"Sni..." She bursts into giggles when she sees me and Cilan in the water, soaked.

I growl. "Snivy, please help us!"

Still giggling, her vines unwrap from her neck and wraps them around my arms. She helps pull me out, and I crawl onto the land, dripping water from my body. I turn back to the water and pull Cilan out, both of us dripping wet.

While Iris makes a fire, I try to peel off my wet clothes behind a tree. Thank Arceus I have a second tank top under the one I'm wearing. I'd completely die of embarrassment if I had nothing on, and people were around, if you know what I mean.

Iris tosses me a towel, and Pikachu hops onto my bare shoulder. His wet fur presses to my cheek, and I giggle.

"I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I'm so sorry! I feel totally awful!" the blonde girl apologizes over and over again. I roll my eyes. She's starting to get on my nerves.

"Please, stop. It's alright!" Cilan reassures her.

I want to turn and smile at him, but I'm afraid of my face erupting in uncontrollable blushes. One reason: he's shirtless.

I get blushes even when I'm thinking about it! It's so awkward, but yet so...attractive. He really does look like the angel I compared him to when I first saw him in Striaton City.

Pikachu waves a yellow paw in front of my face. "Pika?" With a deep blush, I realize I'm staring at Cilan. I turn away.

"Thanks, buddy," I murmur, so only he can hear me. "Is it really that noticeable? My crush on him?"

Sadly, Pikachu nods. "Pika."

"So, what are you doing here?" Iris asks the blonde.

She smiles. "Actually, I wanted to have a little talk with Alice."

I raise my eyebrow. First of all, how does she know my name? And second, she just pushed me and my crush in a river, and now she decides she wants to talk with me?!

"Pika pi?" Pikachu tilts his head.

She runs over to me, and I can't help but inch away. "Here. I want you to take a look at this." She shows me a small device on her wrist, which I recognize as a Cross Tranceiver. She pushes a button, and I see a familiar face.

"Professor Juniper!" I gasp.

She smiles. "How nice to see you, Alice. Hello! How are your Gym battles going?"

"Great! I already won one badge!" I tell her.

"I'm so proud of you!" she says. "But about that badge of yours..." Her voice trails off.

I start to get a sick feeling in my stomach. Please don't take it away! I worked so hard to get it! Besides, someone special gave it to me! It'll always be special and stand out to me!

"Please accept my apologies," Juniper says. "I forgot to give you a Badge Case." I sigh with relief. "Bianca has it. Bye bye!" With that, she disappears off the screen.

The blonde turns to us, smiling. "Bianca. That's me." She waves. "Hello, there!" Ugh. She's a perky one.

Iris speaks up. "My name's Iris. Hi!"

"And I'm Cilan—Pokémon Connoisseur," he says, bowing slightly.

My eyes dart from Bianca to Cilan. I have a feeling she's getting a too detailed and good look at him. I mean, I know Iris is here, too, but I don't seem to have a problem with her anymore. She's made it sort of clear she doesn't have any interest in Cilan, like I do.

Bianca reaches into her bag. "So, let me give you your Badge..." She frowns as she keeps digging. "Come on, come on! I know I put it in my bag!"

After the fire does down, and we're in dry clothes, I can't believe Bianca's still searching for my Badge Case. I feel a bump in my neck and feel my hood tucked inside the jacket. I struggle to pull it out, but I can't reach it. I'm about to get Pikachu to help me, but he's too busy trying to get some dirt out of his yellow fur.

"Here," a voice says. "I got it." I feel Cilan's hands gently go under my jacket and pull out my hood, laying it down neatly.

I flash him a small smile. "Thanks." I turn back to Bianca, who's..._still_looking through her freaking bag?! "Excuse me, have any luck yet?" If she doesn't find it soon, I'm leaving.

She pulls something out. "Here it is!" It's a Badge Case, but it's caked with dirt and mud. She coughs when she holds it up.

"Wow," Iris says. "It sure is dusty."

Bianca blows on it and hands it to me. "Here, Alice."

I take it, not caring how dirty it is. All it needs is a good rinse in the river. "Great! Thank you. This is awesome! I've got a Badge Case!" I hold it up triumphantly.

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu cheers.

I take out my Trio Badge from my pocket and open the case. I gently put the badge in its slot, touching the green diamond lightly. I smile. "Can't wait to get all eight badges!"

Iris looks over my shoulder. "When you do, you're ready!"

"And don't forget, the Nacrene City Gym is now really close by!" Cilan reminds me, smiling at me.

"I'd love to see your badge," Bianca says. "May I? Please?"

I close the case. "Sure. No prob." I hand it to her. "Here you go." I place it in her hands, but in a flash, something small, gray and fluffy snatches out of her hands. We gasp, seeing the gray creature run off. "Hey!" I yell after it. "Come on! That's my Badge Case!"

"Pikachu!" my buddy screams after the creature.

While Pikachu jumps off my shoulder, I grab my backpack and slip it on my shoulders and chase after the creature. "Wait up!" I yell.

"Pika!" Pikachu adds.

"Come back!" Bianca yells.

"Stop!" Iris screams.

After a while, with no luck catching up with that Pokémon, I stumble on a fallen tree trunk and pant. Pikachu keeps running after the creature. I swear, Pikachu acts like he'll never run out of breath.

"I'll tell ya, that's one fast Pokémon for sure!" I say when I've caught my breath.

"Yes, and a wonderful Pokémon, too!" Bianca squeals. My eyes widen in horror.

_Oh, Arceus. Please don't let her be an annoying fangirl!_

"Please!" Iris hisses, much to my relief. "Save the admiring for another time!"

"Yew," Axew mutters.

"It's just because I've never seen such a fast Pokémon before!" Bianca says. "I'm thrilled!"

"Excitable, too," Cilan murmurs.

I whip around to face all three of them. "Knock it off!" I jump on the tree trunk, kneeling. "I've gotta get my badge back!"_ I can't lose that badge! It means so much to me, since Cilan was the one who'd given it to me. _

Bianca looks at me. "They'd probably give you a replacement badge, wouldn't they?"

I gasp, not believing what I'm hearing. "What?!" I turn to her, standing on the tree trunk. "Replacement?!" I shriek as I lose my balance and fall off the trunk, crashing to the ground. I glare at Bianca. "That badge is loaded with special memories, so that's the only one I want!" Besides, it carries the stories of the battles between Pansear and Tepig, Pikachu and Panpour, and Oshawott and Pansage. And that also means that I'll have to go back to Striaton City, and I can't do that! Not when I'm this close to Nacrene City!

"Pika pika!" I hear Pikachu scream.

We follow Pikachu and hide in some bushes, where we see the small fluffy creature. "It's my Badge Case!" I hiss. It places the Badge Case down and starts cleaning it with its tail.

"Aw!" Bianca pulls out her Pokédex. "So cute!"

**Minccino, the Chinchilla Pokémon. Minccino loves shiny things and will use its tail as a brush to clean any objects that are dirty. **

"Minccino likes things tidy!" Bianca says.

"It must've taken the Badge Case because it was dirty," Cilan sums up.

Bianca looks excited. Too excited, in fact. "And since I hate to clean, this is a perfect for me!" She giggles.

I turn back to the Pokémon. "Okay. Time to get my badge back," I murmur, stepping forward.

"No!" Bianca barges past me. "I'll get it myself!"

I blink. "Wow."

"She moves at her own speed," Cilan notes.

"I say she's a little selfish," Iris mutters.

Bianca turns to us. "You just leave it to me, and I'll get your case back in no time!" Minccino takes the Badge Case in its mouth and glares at Bianca. "Okay! Time for battle! Go, Pignite!" Bianca throws a Poké Ball, and a large pig Pokémon appears. It looks a little like my own Tepig.

I tilt my head. "Huh? What's that?"

"That's Tepig's evolved form," Cilan tells me. I take out my Pokédex and hold it up.

**Pignite, the Fire Pig Pokémon, and the evolved form of Tepig. Pignite's food converts into fuel for the flame that burns in its stomach, and when fuel burns in its stomach, it's speed increases. **

"Now, use Tackle on Minccino!" Bianca shouts. Pignite charges at Minccino with full speed, but the furry Pokémon dodges.

"Minccino sure is fast," Cilan says.

"Pika..." Pikachu says.

Bianca looks energized. "Use Flame Charge!" Pignite stomps on the ground, and a cloud of dust surrounds it. Coated with flames, Pignite bursts from it, charging at Minccino.

I gasp. "Whoa! What a move!"

"Powerful!" Iris agrees.

As Pignite closes in on Minccino, it dodges the attack at the last minute. Bianca looks frustrated. "Oh, no! We were so close! So close! SO CLOSE!"

"Obviously, Bianca may not look it, but she's a fierce battler," Cilan says.

I'm starting to get annoyed. I could've had my Badge Case and badge back by now! "Hey! Would ya mind hurrying up with getting my badge back?"

"Pika pika," Pikachu adds.

Bianca smiles. "Good as done!"

"Pignite!" Pignite shouts.

We look up to see Minccino up in a tree. It puts the Badge Case on the branch it's on and glares at Bianca and Pignite. "Pignite, use Flame Charge again!" Bianca orders.

As Pignite prepares to charge again, Minccino closes its ears and opens its mouth, a wave of loud noise erupting from it. It shoots straight at Pignite.

"That's Hyper Voice!" Iris says.

"Looks like Pignite can't move!" Cilan gasps.

He's right. Pignite seems frozen in shock of the noise. Minccino jumps down from the tree and lands on top of Pignite. It brushes its tail onto Pignite, making him burst into giggles.

"Pignite! No!" Bianca cries.

Iris blinks. "There goes Tickle."

Minccino continues to use Tickle on Pignite, giggling along with him. "Pignite, return!" Bianca yells. Pignite returns to his Poké Ball, and Bianca squeals. "Wow, that Minccino's little and cute and so tough at the same time that I just gotta catch it..."

Rolling her eyes, I make a great effort of tuning her voice out. I step forward. "Then I'll just have to get my badge back myself! Ready, Pikachu?" I look at my confident buddy on my shoulder.

He nods. "Pikachu!" He jumps off and onto the ground, glaring and growling at Minccino. "Pika pika!"

Suddenly, Oshawott comes out in a flash of blue light, and smiles. "Oshawott osha!"

"Pika." Pikachu rolls his eyes.

Bianca gasps. "Wow! Does that mean Alice's Pokémon come out all by themselves?!"

"Just Oshawott," Iris answers.

Bianca seems to squeal at the top of her lungs. "Darling!"

I roll my eyes and turn back to Pikachu, who seems to be backing up back to me. "Pika pika."

I kneel down next to him. "Pikachu, why don't we leave this to Oshawott?"

Pikachu reluctantly nods. "Pika."

I get back up, smiling. "Go, Oshawott!"

He nods. "Oshawott!"

"Okay, Oshawott! Use Tackle!" I yell.

Oshawott charges at Minccino, but the Pokémon dodges. It runs off, and Oshawott surprises me by keeping up with it and running by its side, finally cornering it near a tree.

I smirk. "Way to go, Oshawott! Now, use Razor Shell!"

But Bianca yells over my voice. "Hydro Pump, let's go!"

My eyes widen. "Huh?!" _Who the heck does she think she is, telling my Pokémon what moves to use?!_

"I said Hydro Pump, and I mean Hydro Pump!" Bianca screams.

Holding his little head, Oshawott shakes, looking like he's having some kind of freak out. He's trying to figure out how he can perform that move.

Glaring at Bianca, I turn to her. "Oshawott doesn't know that move!" I turn back to my sea otter with a softer glance. "Oshawott, Razor Shell!"

With his scalchop forming into a swordlike weapon, Oshawott charges at Minccino, but it dodges and jumps onto the tree. Jumping back down, it glares at my sea otter.

"Uh-oh! Oshawott's in trouble now!" I yelp.

"Pika!" Pikachu yells.

Minccino brushes its tail along Oshawott's skin and makes it giggle. Suddenly, when Oshawott's laughing so hard, Minccino's tail glows with a white light, and slaps Oshawott twice in the face.

"Oshawott!" I cry.

Bianca frowns. "Hm. And we were so close!"

"It used Tickle and followed it with Double Slap," Iris says.

"Some battling style," Cilan comments. "Minccino is, without a doubt, rich and full flavored!"

Oshawott comes back to me, head hanging down. "Had enough, Oshawott?" I ask him.

He pushes Pikachu in front of him, closer to Minccino. "Pika?" Pikachu asks, confused.

"You can do it, Pikachu!" I yell encouragingly.

Minccino takes the Badge Case back into its mouth and runs off again, before Pikachu can use an attack on it.

"Oh, no!" Bianca cries. "Minccino got away!"

I flash her a glare. "It wouldn't have happened if you didn't talk so much!"

She smiles. "And miss out on giving you this great advice?" _Advice?! All she's been so far is a total pain in my neck. _"Don't you see? I really wanna catch that Minccino, so be a dear and help me out." She places a hand on my shoulder. "Won't you, Alice?"

"Huh?!" My eyes widen in disbelief.

"Yeah!" She smiles at me. "You'll get your badge and your Badge Case back, right? So it's all good!"

I sigh. "I guess I've got no choice." I look away. "I'll help," I mutter.

Bianca cheers. "Oh, happy dance! Now I'll catch Minccino for sure!"

I probably look crestfallen. "I was going to Nacrene City to win a new badge," I mutter. I hang my head. "Oh, man..."

Cilan, who must've heard me, smiles. "But Alice, Nacrene City is just over the mountain! No need to get upset."

I look up to see a HUGE mountain, and sigh. "Well, that's some mountain."

"Pika, pikachu," Pikachu mutters.

"Man, oh man!" I groan. "It's like Minccino vanished!"

"Pika pika," Pikachu growls.

Bianca's eyes light up. "Wait!" She turns to Cilan. "Do you happen to have any shiny pots or cookware?"

My crush blinks. "Uh...sure. Have a look." He opens his backpack and takes out a silver spoon. "See that shine? There's nothing like polished flatware."

Bianca grabs it. "Thanks! It's perfect! Now, I'll just do this." She kneels down and starts running it through the dirt.

He shrieks. "My nice clean spoon!"

"Now, there we go!" Bianca holds up the now dirty spoon.

I raise my eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

She runs off into the forest with the spoon. "I've figured out how to lure Minccino!"

Iris gasps. "Of course! Remember? Minccino just loves to clean anything that's dirty!"

I stare after Bianca and shrug. Maybe this perky blonde girl thought of a really good idea.

All four of us in this order from left to right—Iris, Bianca, me, and Cilan—crouch behind the bushes. Bianca holds a rope attached to a stick, which holds up a pot that will serve as a proper trap, with the spoon under. I helped coming up with this kind of trap—I've seen it too many times, thanks to Team Rocket trying to steal Pikachu.

Come to think of it, I haven't heard of Team Rocket since we saw them in the Dream Yard...back in Striaton City.

Next to me, Cilan whimpers. "No...my beautiful clean spoon..." I rub his back comfortingly.

"I wonder if this is gonna work," I mutter.

"Pika," Pikachu murmurs.

Bianca glares at us. "Shh!" Suddenly, the bushes rustle, and Minccino's head comes out. "What did I tell you?"

I gasp. "You were right!"

Pikachu nods. "Pika."

Minccino looks at the spoon, curiosity flaming in its eyes, and inches towards it. It sniffs it suspiciously.

"It sure doesn't like the dirt," Iris comments.

Minccino gently swipes its fluffy tail on the dirty spoon, cleaning it. Bianca jumps up and smiles. "Here we go!" She pulls sharply on the rope and the stick gives out, causing the pot to close over a surprised Minccino. "I did it! I caught Minccino!" Suddenly, the chinchilla lifts up the pot and walks away, the pot still on its body. "Wait, Minccino! You can't just walk away! Come back!" But Minccino runs far away. Bianca hangs her head in defeat. "Oh, no! It's gone!"

"And it's got my spoon, too," Cilan says sadly.

I place my hand on my hip. "It's just like I thought. Battling's the only way to get Minccino."

"Pika," Pikachu whispers.

Iris turns to me. "But we're at a disadvantage!"

"We'll get taken out by Tickle again at close range!" Cilan points out.

I smile. "I'll handle it. Don't worry."

We run through a shallow river, water splashing on my boots. I run at the lead, Pikachu just behind me. I jump behind a rock, Bianca, Iris and Cilan following me.

"There's Minccino, over there!" Cilan gasps. Sure enough, the gray Pokémon rests in a nearby tree.

"And it's got your Badge Case, too," Iris adds.

Bianca turns to me. "Okay, Alice. It's all up to you."

I nod. "Got it. Right!" I jump over the rock and throw a Poké Ball. "Snivy, I choose you!" She appears and glares at Minccino, who jumps down from the tree. "Snivy, Attract!" Snivy blinks and sends a few hearts towards Minccino, but it dodges. It hides behind a tree and, surprisingly, blinks and sends bright pink hearts towards Snivy.

Snivy becomes dazed with love, and looks at Minccino like he's a brave prince. I face-palm. I never expected Snivy to fall for Attract like that! I'd always figured Snivy was the love 'em and leave 'em type of Pokémon.

"Oh, man!" I gasp. "I had no idea Minccino could use Attract as well!"

"Pika!" Pikachu says.

"Now Snivy, return!" Snivy returns to her Poké Ball.

I feel something soft brush against my leg. I look down to see Pikachu. "Pikachu!"

I smile at him. "You'll do it?"

He nods eagerly. "Pika!"

"'Kay, it's up to you!" I say.

"Pika pika!" He jumps in front of me, ready to battle.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail, go!" I shout. Pikachu's tail glimmers with a silver shine and he prepares to bring it down on Minccino, but it dodges. "Pikachu, Quick Attack, let's go!" Pikachu charges at Minccino with an incredible speed and keeps up with a running Minccino. "Pikachu, use Iron Tail one more time!" I yell. But Minccino's prepared. Tail glowing, Minccino's tail collides with Pikachu's. It closes its ears and opens its mouth, letting a sharp, ear-splitting cry erupt.

"Pika!" Pikachu screams.

"Pikachu!" I yell to him.

Minccino jumps behind Pikachu, ready to use Tickle. "Here comes Tickle, Pikachu!" Bianca shouts. "Look out!" Minccino brushes its furry tail along Pikachu and uses Tickle repeatedly, but Pikachu grits his teeth and holds in a laugh.

I nod. "Stay strong, Pikachu!"

"Go, Pikachu! Go!" Bianca cheers. Soon enough, Minccino gets tired out, and gives up on using Tickle. "Now, Pikachu, use Zap Cannon!"

I growl, whipping around to her. "Pikachu can't use that move!"

She glares at me. "Hey! Just give it a shot!"

I glare at her. "Come on, Bianca! You watch!" I turn back to Pikachu. "Pikachu, quick! Use Thunderbolt!" Crackling with lightning, Pikachu shoots a strong bolt at Minccino, shocking it. "Good job, Pikachu!" I praise him.

Bianca runs to me. "Alice! Oh, please tag me! I want to catch it! Let me take over!" She digs in her bag for a Poké Ball. "I know my Poké Ball was in here before—"

"Hurry up!" I snap. Minccino is regaining consciousness. "We're running out of time!"

She keeps searching. "If I cleaned out my bag once in a while, I'd never have this problem in the first place!" she groans.

Minccino blinks and runs off, escaping. "Minccino!" I yell.

"I've got it!" Bianca yells out triumphantly. She holds up a very, very dirty Poké Ball. Minccino stops and sees the Poké Ball. Bianca blows on it, cleaning off some of the dust. Minccino runs to her and jumps on her shoulder and starts sweeping it with its tail. The Poké Ball suddenly opens and Minccino's sucked in, the ball shutting and shaking, finally clicking shut. Bianca turns to me. "You see? I got it," she says with no emotion whatsoever.

My eyes widen. "What?!"

"I suspect a dirty Poké Ball was too hard for Minccino to pass up," Cilan says.

"Yeah, you're right," Iris says. "I guess people say it's better to be lucky than good. The question is, will those two get along?"

Cilan smiles. "Of course! If you take Bianca's unique personality and pair it with all of Minccino's talents, what a combination!"

I smile at Bianca. "Well, that's a Pokémon Connoisseur for ya! Whatever he just said..." I blush.

"Pikachu," my buddy says.

"It doesn't matter," Bianca says, smiling at Minccino's Poké Ball. "Whatever. 'Cause I just caught Minccino!"

I climb up the tree where Minccino was and cheer. "Yes!" I grab my Badge Case. "I finally got my Badge Case!" Suddenly, the tree shakes and I yelp, falling to the ground. "Ow!" The pot falls on my head, making me yelp in pain.

"Pika pi?!" Pikachu screams, running to me.

I look at him under the pot. "I'm okay. No need to worry!" I add, remembering Dawn, a close friend of mine. The spoon falls onto the ground near me.

"Here," Nurse Joy says. "All the Pokémon you left in our care are feeling much better."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Bianca and I say in unison.

Joy turns to me. "And Alice, I gave your Efg a thorough check up, too. It's healthy as can be!" She puts the Egg case onto the counter.

"Awesome!" I take the Egg case, holding it protectively.

Bianca looks at it. "What kind of Egg is it?"

"To tell the truth, I don't even know myself!" I confess.

Bianca's face falls. "Aww... Hey Alice, how about a battle?"

I turn to her. "Sounds great to me! Let's do it!"

On the battlefield, I shout over to her. "'Kay! We'll each use one Pokémon each! It's over when one of our Pokémon's unable to continue!"

She nods. "Right! I'm going with my Pignite!" At her words, Pignite appears.

"Okay," I mutter to myself. "It's a Fire-type. In that case, I'll use—"

"I know!" Bianca yells to me. "You're going to have to use Pikachu, right?"

My eyes widen. "Huh?!"

"Pika?!" I hear my buddy gasp in disbelief.

"Come on, Alice!" Bianca shouts. "Let's get this show on the road!"

Pikachu runs to my side, smiling. I turn to him. "Pikachu, you into it?"

He nods. "Pika pikachu!"

I nod. "Alright! Pikachu, go!" He runs forward, ready to battle.

"Take Down, now!" Bianca shouts. Pignite charges at Pikachu and smashes into him with a critical hit. "Use Heat Crash!" Surrounded by a ball of fire, Pignite crashes down onto Pikachu.

I hear Iris gasp from the side. "Pikachu! No!"

"I doubt even Pikachu could deal with that..." Cilan's voice trails off.

_But I know my buddy well. _"Pikachu! Get up!" Pikachu opens his eyes and struggles to get up, finally getting back on his paws.

Bianca smiles. "Fabulous! Wow! Pikachu never gives up!"

"I'm not sure I like the way this is going," Iris admits.

"I tend to agree," Cilan says. "Though Pikachu's still hanging in there."

"Pignite, Flame Charge!" Bianca calls. Coated with fire, Pignite runs for Pikachu.

This is our chance! "'Kay, Pikachu! Volt Tackle, go!"

With lightning surrounding him, Pikachu charges for Pignite, and fire and electricity collide, creating a yellow cloud of power. Pignite and Pikachu are both thrown back, exhausted.

"Pignite, no!" Bianca shouts.

I bite my lip. "Pikachu!" My buddy smirks at me and gets up, shaking.

I see the swirls on Pignite's eyes. "Pignite! No!" Bianca cries.

I hear Cilan and Iris gasp. "Pignite is unable to battle, so the winner is Alice!" Cilan says.

"Bianca may have more badges than Alice, but you wouldn't know it after today's battle," Iris says, smiling. I flash her a smile. Wow! She actually complimented me on something!

Bianca returns Pignite to his Poké Ball. "Pignite, return!" He does. "You were great." She runs to me. "May I say something, Alice? Please?" I nod. "I may have lost today, but I am just starting out on my journey! Which means next time we meet, Pignite and Minccino will be stronger!"

I blink. Sometimes, I can't handle perky girls for long. "Okay..."

"So, good luck battling at the Nacrene Gym!" she says. "Bye! See ya later!" She runs off and disappears.

Iris and Cilan come up behind me. "She sure can move," Iris comments.

"And at her own pace," Cilan adds.

I smile and cradle Pikachu in my arms, looking at the badge in my Badge Case. "Whatever. I won a battle, and my new Badge Case is nice and clean! Alright! Pretty soon, I'll have two badges in here!"

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu cheers.


	14. A Night at the Nacrene City Museum!

A Night at the Nacrene City Museum!

Chapter 14

A Night in the Nacrene City Museum!

"We're finally in Nacrene City!" I say, admiring the colorful buildings. My smile grows wider as I look around for any sign to tell me where the Gym is.

"Pika!" Pikachu tightens his grip on my shoulder, excited.

Iris gasps. "Look at all those cool buildings!"

"They're actually unused warehouses, which the city leases to artists," Cilan tells us. "And because of that, Nacrene City is known as the City of Art!"

"Wow!" Iris says. "There's beautiful art everywhere you look!" I have to agree with her on that one.

"The city is also admired for its style, so it's the City of Admiration, too," Cilan informs.

I turn to him, smiling. "Well, as far as I'm concerned, you can call it what you want, but I came here to Nacrene City for one reason: a Gym battle!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu adds.

Cilan smiles at me, looking straight into my eyes. "The city's museum just happens to be the site of the Nacrene Gym!"

"Yeah?" My eyes widen with excitement. "How awesome is it to have a Gym inside a museum? Let's go there now!"

"Pika!" my buddy says.

Soon, we find our way to the Gym, but the doors are shut. "I think it's closed!" Iris says.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu gasps.

I glare. "I wanna challenge the Nacrene Gym right now! Is anybody here?!" When no one answers me, I go to the door and knock on it. "Uh, hello?" I look down and twist the knobs, but they're not turning. "Ugh," I groan. _Great. Just great. _

"A poster," Cilan says, looking at the wall next to the doors.

Iris looks at it. "Secret artifacts exhibit?"

"And looking at the dates, it's today!" Cilan reads from it. "But it doesn't make any sense that it would be closed."

I turn back to the door and knock again, this time with much more force. "Uh, excuse me?" No one answers. "Nothing."

"Pika," murmurs Pikachu. Suddenly, we hear an ear-splitting male scream. "Huh?!"

Suddenly, a man bursts through the doors and falls to the ground, panting hard. He must've been the one who just screamed. But what on earth was he doing inside the museum if it's closed?

Cilan kneels down to the man. "Sir! Are you alright?"

The man points to the inside of the museum. "In there! It's horrible!"

We look inside the museum, but only see a normal hallway. I raise my eyebrow. This guy must be crazy. "Is something wrong with the hallway?" Iris asks him.

He shakes his head. "No! It's fine! The dome fossil was chasing me!"

My eyes slightly widen. "Whoa. A dome fossil?"

"It was chasing you?" Iris asks.

Cilan takes another look back at the hallway. "But I don't see a thing."

The man shakes. "It's there, all right!"

I turn to Iris and Cilan, concerned the man may be right about this. "Hey, let's check it out."

Once inside, Pikachu jumps off my shoulder and runs to a stand with a cool-looking fossil. "Pika pi!" He points to it, and I'm guessing that's the dome fossil.

"The dome fossil is right over there," Cilan tells the man, who's hiding behind the corner.

He reveals himself, still shaking. "But how?! It was just chasing after me a minute ago!"

Cilan's green eyes seemed to be interested, to my surprise. "Fill us in, please. And don't leave out any details."

The man blinks. "Uh...sure."

At a small cafe outside, we sit at a table, and the man begins his story.

"We're behind in preparations for the secret artifacts exhibit," he starts. "So when the artifacts finally arrived last night, the workers and I were rushing to put together the displays. By the time we'd finished, it was very late. I was alone, doing a final check of the artifacts, when suddenly..." His voice trails off, as if remembering a horrible incident. "As I made my way towards the light switch, I heard them: footsteps coming towards me from behind. Things were starting to get a bit scary, when suddenly I heard a cry. Scared out of my wits, I went to bring the workers back with me, and we searched the whole museum. But we didn't find anything out of the ordinary. So, since our patron safety comes first, we decided to postpone the exhibit. After the workers left, I decided to stay and search the museum, one last time..." His voice cracks.

Cilan seems to take everything in. "Oh my. And that's when we ran into you."

I cross my arms and lean back in my chair. "I'll tell us, weird things can happen."

"Pika." Pikachu nods.

I gasp, realizing what all of this means. "A curse..." I whisper. I glare at them. "It's gotta be!"

They gasp. "A curse?" Iris asks.

"Pika?" My buddy tilts his head.

"There's no doubt in my mind that an angry spirit of some sort has put a terrible curse on this museum, and that's that!" I say, not wanting to admit I'm scared about this.

The man blinks, obviously terrified. "Huh? You think it's a curse?"

Both shaking, Axew hides in Iris's hair, while Pikachu jumps into my arms, hiding his face in my neck. He shakes uncontrollably with fear.

I look at my friends. "You see? Even Pikachu and Axew know it's true. And bad things will happen if we don't do something now!"

"Don't overreact," Cilan says, smiling with amusement. "There's a rational explanation for this. It's simply a misunderstanding, that's all."

I raise my eyebrow. "A misunderstanding?!"

"I'm sure science has the key. Scientific perspective is what we need." Cilan smiles at me, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded across his chest.

I stand up from my chair, glaring. I never thought I'd be angry at my crush. "Yeah?! Then figure it out by scientific perspective!" I feel like Iris and the man aren't even here right now—it's just me and Cilan. But the sad part is, we're arguing.

He smiles, closing his eyes. "I'll do just that. Huh. This is turning into a recipe I like."

The man blinks. "But what are you saying?"

I turn to him. "I'm saying I'll find out why a spirit would cast a curse on your museum! I guarantee it!"

"And I'll find out what's really going on with science," Cilan says. "The scientific method's the smart way to go."

I suddenly realize why I'm in Nacrene City in the first place: my Gym battle! No matter what Cilan says, and how much I want to prove him wrong, I don't have time for this! I hold up my hands. "Hold it right there! I wanna know about my Gym battle!"

Iris glares at me. "There's no time for that now!" Cilan nods, agreeing with her, and I hang my head, sighing in defeat.

"Lenora's not here, anyway," the man speaks up. "And you can't battle without her." He chuckles.

My eyes widen as I look at him. "Huh? Lenora?"

He stands up. "I haven't yet introduced myself. My name is Hawes, and I'm co-creator of the museum. And when I referred to Lenora, I meant meant my wife. She's also the Nacrene Gym Leader."

I smile. "Yeah? Well, that's awesome! My name is Alice, and this is my partner, Pikachu." I motion to my buddy.

He stands up in my arms. "Pika pikachu!"

Iris stands up as well. "My name's Iris!"

"And I'm Cilan, a Pokémon Connoisseur," Cilan introduces himself, also standing up. "May we have a look around the museum, if you don't mind?"

"Yes, of course," Hawes says.

Back at the museum, we stand outside of it. "I'd be happy to give you a quick tour," Hawes says. "So, if you would all follow me." He leads us inside. "It's thought that Kabuto, the Shellfish Pokémon, were living on our beaches as far back as three hundred million years ago!"

I swallow, amazed. "Whoa. That's a long time ago," I whisper to Pikachu, who nods.

"Wow! Isn't that a Dragonite?" Iris exclaims, pointing to a skeletal model.

"Yew..." Axew stares at the model.

Hawes smiles. "This is quite impressive. It's a skeletal model of a Dragonite. It just so happens that it's the largest Dragonite skeletal model in the world!" He motions over to a rock. "Now, take a look at this. A most amazing rock. It's a meteorite!"

I blink. "Meteorite?"

"Which means it came from space," Cilan tells me.

Hawes nods. "Yeah, and which also means it should possess some kind of cosmic energy, as well."

It's Cilan's turn to look amazed. "Cosmic energy? Fascinating!"

I smile and nod. "That sounds amazing!"

"Pika!" Pikachu agrees.

Hawes leads us to a large stand in the exhibit. "This is our secret artifacts exhibit's main attraction."

I gasp, running over to some suits of armor. "Wow... So cool!"

"Pika!" Pikachu says.

"These suits of armor were once worn in the Unova region," Hawes informs us.

Cilan smiles. "Simply captivating!"

My smile disappears. "Suits of armor..." My mind floats back to the curse I suspected earlier. I suddenly gasp, something catching my eye. "Check that out!" I point to a golden and blue sarcophagus on the stand.

"Pika!" Pikachu cries.

I hear Cilan, Iris and Hawes come up behind us. "The artifacts on display here were found in a ruin," Hawes explains to us. "And researchers have said Cofagrigus is known to appear in these types of ruins!"

I tilt my head. "Cofagrigus?"

"Yes," Cilan says. "It's this Pokémon's name. Is this a real specimen?" Cilan turns to Hawes as he asks the question.

Hawes climbs up onto the stand. "No. It's a replica." He opens the sarcophagus.

"It's certainly well done," Cilan compliments.

I cover my mouth, my mind searching for anything unusual. The sarcophagus seems connected to the curse somehow, although I have no proof.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Iris asks me.

I turn to her. "It's about the curse. This has something to do with it!"

She looks taken aback. "Really?"

"Why do you think so?" Cilan asks me, raising an eyebrow.

I bite my lip, already tired of him doubting me. "It's my sixth sense! That's how I know!"

He smiles. "Which means you have no evidence, so it's only a hunch."

Avoiding his eyes, I try to focus on something else in the room, and that's when my eyes fall on the mask. "Hey, Hawes!" I call to him. "What's this?"

He comes to me. "Now, that's a Yamask mask. Yamask frequently appear in ruins."

"Intriguing!" Cilan says.

I place a hand on my hip. "What a weird Pokémon," I mutter to Pikachu.

"Pika," he nods.

"Well, the mask is a replica," Hawes tells us.

Staring at the mask, I feel the wheels in my head turning rapidly, trying to find a certain answer. "I've got a bad feeling about this." I look at the mask. "Something..."

Hawes leads us into a huge room, where shelves line the walls. In the shelves, various books are stacked neatly against each other. I smile and gasp at the sight. I love to read, and admire books, so this a certain kind of paradise for me.

"Our library is filled with additional artifacts information," Hawes says. "Visitors are encouraged to study as much as they like!"

Cilan smiles. "Now this is what I call full service!"

"And so," Hawes continues. "This is the end of our tour." His expression turns serious. "Now tell me, did you find anything strange?"

Cilan speaks first. "Well, everything seems to be quite normal, as far as I can tell."

I blink. "Something definitely doesn't feel right to me. But I can't put my finger on what it is. But I know one thing: I need to eat." I feel my stomach getting empty.

Iris turns on me. "Will you stop?!"

I glare. "I don't see you coming up with anything! And it was a joke!"

"Uh, Hawes, sir? Would it be okay if we slept here in the museum tonight?" Cilan asks.

Hawes's eyes widen. "Huh?! Sleep in the museum?!"

Cilan nods. "Right. That would allow us to keep an eye out for any paranormal activities that occur."

I smile. "Oh, yeah! There's no doubt angry spirits are definitely more active at night. It would be a great way to find out what's causing the curse."

Hawes hesitates. "Well, you all may be kids, but you're sure courageous! I'm quite impressed."

"Actually," Iris pipes up. "She's the only kid." She points over to me.

I glare at her. "Now, what does that mean?!"

When nighttime comes, I sit in my sleeping bag and gently hold the small Egg case. "I just can't wait to see what kind of Pokémon hatches."

"Pika!" Pikachu says. I gently place the case back into my backpack and zip it up, making sure it's kept warm.

"You sure you'll be alright here?" Hawes asks us.

I nod. "Of course! We sleep just like this all the time!"

"But what if we start to hear voices, and things start to move on their own?!" Now Hawes looks terrified.

Iris gives him a reassuring smile. "Then that'll be our cue to spring into action!"

"And then we'll have the chance to solve this mystery, smooth as silk," Cilan adds.

Hawes nods. "Sounds good to me."

As everyone starts to fall asleep, I try to fall fast asleep, but I can't. Pikachu snores softly in my arms, but I can't get myself to drift off into my dreams. The curse is bothering me.

What scares me the most is the curse hurting either Iris or Cilan. I'm more worried about Cilan, since he's my crush and all. What if he's hurt by the source of the curse?!

Suddenly, I feel an icy chill run through my body, and I shiver. Leaping from my sleeping bag, I crawl over to the nearest person near me, which is Iris.

I shake her. "Iris! Wake up!"

Her eyes open. "Huh? Alice, what is it?" She seems slightly annoyed I woke her up.

"What's wrong?" Cilan asks. His voice sounds sleepy. That's adorable!

"Pika?" I must've woken Pikachu up.

I look around the room. "I'm feeling a weird chill."

Iris raises her eyebrow. "Weird chill?"

I nod. "Yeah, like something's closing in on us."

"Another unscientific explanation," Cilan sighs.

I suddenly see a black cloud of light fog covering the air around us. "Hey, what's going on?"

I see Hawes sit up. "You're up. Is something wrong?" He sees the fog and shrieks, jumping up. "That fog! What in the world could it be?!"

"I'm telling you that angry spirit's about to do something bad!" I say.

"Of course not," Cilan protests, smiling. "The air conditioning must've broken down."

I'm about to ask Hawes if the museum really does have air conditioning when I suddenly hear the clanking sound of metal. "Hear that?" I whisper. "What's that weird noise?"

An armor suit, but one without anyone in it, is revealed and comes out of the black fog. Hawes shrieks with pure terror.

"A ghost!" he screams.

I whip around to Cilan, glaring. "Alright! What's the scientific explanation, Cilan?"

"Easy," he says, looking at me with those hypnotizing emerald eyes. "It's the poltergeist phenomenon, which refers to things that move, but due to the vibrations of ultra low frequency sound waves."

The knight in armor takes out its sword and aims it at us. Gulping, I turn back to Cilan. "Are sound waves doing that, too?!" I choke out.

He just smiles. "It's possible that someone is manipulating its arms with strings."

Rolling my eyes, I sniff. "Wow. That's kind of a stretch." He just has to have an explanation to everything, doesn't he?! But that's something I love about him. The knight charges at us, ready to strike. "Pikachu, Quick Attack, now!" Charging with full speed, Pikachu slams into the knight, causing it to shatter in pieces. "Alright!" But thanks to a ghost-like power, the knight forms back together, ready to fight again.

"That's curious," Cilan says.

I glare. Pikachu and I are not going to lose to a freaking knight! "No! That's a curse! Okay, Pikachu! Use Volt Tackle!" Covered in lightning, Pikachu smashes into the knight. This time, when it falls into the pieces, a purplish flame erupts from it.

Hawes gasps. "Is that a ghostly aura?!"

"It's just an electrical discharge, and nothing more," Cilan explains. "People often mistake phenomena like that for ghosts."

The flame comes towards me and circles around my body, giving off an incredible heat. "Man! The thing's hot!" The flame leaves me and goes for Hawes, chasing him around the room. I throw a Poké Ball. "Oshawott! Water Gun, let's go!" Oshawott lets a blast of cool water shoot from his mouth, destroying the flame. Suddenly, the helmet from the armor suit is lifted into the air. I glare at Cilan. "Alright! Explain!"

"A change in the magnetic field is reacting with the metal in the armor, and causing it to float," he says.

The helmet chases after Hawes, and I yell to Pikachu. "Pikachu, Iron Tail, let's go!" Glimmering a silver color, Pikachu's tail comes down on the helmet, crashing it to the floor.

Hawes looks at us. "Thanks. I needed that."

I take Pikachu into my arms, thinking. "You know, that angry spirit, it looks to me like it's after Hawes, you know?"

"Huh?!" He looks horrified now. "M-me?! I don't think I've done anything that would cause someone to get so mad."

Suddenly, little drops of rain fall from the ceiling. "Rain?" I tilt my head.

"There's something wrong with the sprinklers. That's all," Cilan says, smirking at me.

The rain suddenly stops, leaving us all confused. "Pika." Pikachu blinks in surprise.

"It stopped," I murmur.

Suddenly, we hear a sobbing noise. I feel goosebumps arise on my skin. Now, it's really starting to get scary for me. In the middle of the night, with no one except my Pokémon and my friends.

"Those...are the very same sounds I heard last night!" Hawes chokes out.

I try to listen better to the sound. "It sounds like crying! That spirit must be so sad!"

Cilan shakes his head. "No, no. That crying is actually low frequency sound waves, which are causing something to squeak."

I growl, turning to him. "Whatever! Let's go check out where it's coming from! Oshawott, return!" The small sea otter returns to his Poké Ball.

"Huh?" Once we run into the secret artifacts exhibit, I turn to see the Yamask mask inside the case, tears streaming down its face. "There's your crying. But...why would that mask be sad?" This makes absolutely no sense.

"What appears to be tears are, in reality, condensation, and nothing more," Cilan says.

Suddenly, the mask is lifted into the air and smashes against the glass of the case with much force. But it doesn't break.

"The angry spirit is in that mask!" I realize.

"Wrong!" Cilan states. "It's merely attracted to something, like the positive and negative pulls of a magnet."

Suddenly, I turn around and gasp, air catching in my lungs. The skeletal model of the Dragonite behind us—ready to attack.

I glare at it, trying to act brave. "Alright. Are you the angry spirit? Tell us!"

"Stop!" Cilan snaps at me. I flinch. He's never yelled at me before. "It's simply a change in the magnetic field!" He looks unsure of himself. "I don't even believe me anymore..." We dodge the Dragonite and it slams onto the glass, trying to break it. I think it wants the mask! "Pansage, quick! Use Bullet Seed!" Pansage appears and shoots seeds at the skeleton, making it crumble and fall to the ground.

"It sounded like some sort of cry!" I say. "It could've been the voice of the angry spirit!"

For once, Cilan doesn't try to correct me with scientific explanations. "What about the mask? Is it alright?"

"I'll go check on it!" Hawes says. Running to the case, he swipes some kind of card on a device and the glass opens. Suddenly, the mask flies out and glues itself onto Cilan's face.

"Cilan!" I yelp. Iris and I run forward and try to pull the mask off him, but it's too tight. "It's stuck! It won't come off!" Suddenly, Iris and I are pushed back, staring at Cilan. "...Cilan, are you okay? Snap out of it!" _Please!_

A voice speaks. "And now...I shall punish you!" He suddenly throws Will-O-Whisp attacks at us, and we jump and dodge them all.

Tears start to fill my eyes. "What's wrong with you?! Cilan!" I suddenly gasp, realizing what this all means. "It's obvious that Cilan's been taken over by the angry spirit!"

Iris turns to me. "Taken over? But how come?"

I bite my lip, trying to blink away tears. "I think it's because Cilan denied the angry spirit was real in the first place!"

Iris gulps. "Oh, man!"

Swallowing a hard lump in my throat, I step forward. "Spirit, listen to me! You've got to talk to us now! Please, tell us why you're so angry!"

After a while, it speaks. "You locked it away!"

I blink. "...Locked it away?"

"The mask is precious to me!" it screams.

My eyes widen. "Huh?!"

"That Yamask mask is the real deal, alright," a new voice says. I turn to see a woman standing in the door frame, her hands on her hips.

Hawes looks relieved. "Hi, dear! You couldn't have picked a better time to come home!"

"'Hi dear'? You must be Lenora!" I gasp.

She nods. "That's right. So, tell me, Hawes. Where did you get that mask anyway?"

Hawes is silent. "The mask...let me see... Last night, when we were loading in the artifacts, I found the mask on the ground. I had only ordered a replica of Cofagrigus, so I assumed they sent this Yamask mask as a kind of...thank-you gift, but a replica as well."

Lenora glares at him. "You know better than that!"

"Well, I should have!" Hawes looks nervous.

Suddenly, the skeletal model of the Dragonite comes back to life and looks like it's prepared to attack us.

Lenora glares. "Now, stop that. That's more than enough punishment!"

"Get out!" the spirit yells. The skeleton of Dragonite goes for Lenora.

"If that's the way you want it, go, Watchog!" She throws a Poké Ball and a slim brown Pokémon comes out, its body glowing with a bright blinding light.

I take out my Pokédex and quickly scan it.

**Watchog, the Lookout Pokémon, and the evolved form of Patrat. Watchog's body contains luminescent compounds, which allows its eyes and stripes to glow. **

"Yamask, why don't you come out and show yourself?" Lenora asks.

I gasp. "Yamask?! No way!" Finally, the mask comes off of Cilan's face. I sigh heavily with relief. "Cilan! Thank goodness! You okay?"

He looks at me. "I'm fine. What happened?"

The mask suddenly reveals a black Pokémon with red eyes. Its tail holds up the mask. Curious about it, I hold up my Pokédex to it.

**Yamask, the Spirit Pokémon. Yamask is a Ghost-type Pokémon that wanders the ruins of ancient civilizations. **

"Of course!" Lenora says. "Yamask must've been hiding in the artifacts. That's how it ended up here! But then, it accidentally dropped its mask." She turns to Hawes. "You thought the mask was a replica, and you made the mistake of putting it in that display case. But when Yamask saw it locked away in the case, it assumed you had stolen it."

"So, Yamask got mad and did this," Iris puts together. "I get it!"

"Of course!" Cilan says. "Yamask used Psychic to move the skeletal model and the fossil, too. The fog was Haze."

"The rain was Rain Dance, and the ghostly aura was Will-O-Whisp," I say. I turn to a surprised Iris. "See? I've been telling you it was the work of an angry spirit all along, haven't I?" I smirk.

Cilan smiles. "Well, not exactly."

I turn to face him, blue eyes blazing. "Come on! My guess was better than yours!"I turn away, arms folded over my chest.

Hawes runs beside Lenora and turns to the Yamask. "Yamask, I truly regret my mistake caused you so much grief. I'm sorry. I beg you to forgive me."

Lenora smiles softly. "I apologize, too. Forgive us."

Yamask nods. "Ya ya!"

I smile and cuddle Pikachu in my arms. "I know it's just a hunch, but I really think Yamask just forgave you."

To my surprise, Axew comes out of Iris's hair and nods. "Axew!" Wow. He almost never agrees with me!

"You think so?" Hawes asks.

Lenora smiles. "Wonderful! Thank you."

"Awesome!" I say. "Turns out Yamask is actually a cool Pokémon."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu agrees.

"True," Cilan says. "And with an air of real mystery."

"Leaving so soon?" Lenora asks Yamask once we're outside.

The Pokémon nods. "Ya!"

"Well, you're welcome to visit us anytime!" Hawes says.

"Ya ya!" With that, Yamask flies off.

"Bye!" I call after it. "Take care!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells.

"Bye, Yamask!" Iris yells. I look to see the sun coming up over the hills in the distance. Iris yawns. "What a beautiful morning!"

"Right," Cilan nods. "Such delicious morning air!"

I smile at Pikachu, who's now on my shoulder. "Perfect for a Gym battle!"

"Pika!" he agrees.

"I see," Lenora says. "Does that mean you came to challenge my Gym?"

I turn around to face her. "Cool! I'm Alice, from Pallet Town, and you're right. I'd love to challenge you to a Gym battle!"

She smiles. "Of course! I'm always curious about Trainers' battling styles. I'm looking forward to seeing yours."

I smile. "Alright!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers.

Suddenly, when everyone starts to head back into the Gym, and their backs are turned, I suddenly surprise myself when I unexpectedly wrap my arms around Cilan in a tight embrace. He seems taken aback, but slowly hugs me back.

"I was so worried," I whisper. "I thought I'd lost you forever when you were controlled by that Yamask."

I feel him smile. "Don't worry. I'm alright. And you don't have to worry about losing me. I'm not going anywhere."

I smile, burying my face in his chest. _I love you, and that will never change. _


	15. The Battle According to Lenora!

The Battle According to Lenora!

Chapter 15

The Battle According to Lenora

Once all five of us—seven counting Pikachu and Axew—are in the museum, I'm starting to feel a little agitated. "Lenora?"

"Yes, Alice?" She turns to me.

"I'm kind of wondering where the battlefield is," I say truthfully.

Cilan nods. "Right. It doesn't seem like it would be here."

"You'll see soon enough," Lenora says, smiling.

We keep walking until we get to these doors. Hawes places his hand on some kind of sensor and turns to us. "We're entering an area which is closed to the general public."

The doors open to reveal a large room with many shelves, each filled with various books. I gasp, loving the sight.

"This part of the library is reserved for rare books and study materials," Lenora explains. "You need special permission from us to enter here."

"This is the finest collection in the entire Unova region," Hawes adds. "You can learn anything about Unova's history and culture right here!"

Cilan smiles. "Incredible! You've even got books about Pokémon Connoisseurs!"

"That's because the Unova region's where Pokémon Connoisseurs got their start," Lenora says, smiling. "Are you interested?"

The emerald-eyed boy turn to her. "Of course! I'm, in fact, on this journey as a Pokémon Connoisseur to meet as many different Pokémon and Trainers as I possibly can."

"Well well, there's nothing better than lots of experience, so best of luck," Lenora says.

Cilan smiles. "Thanks!"

"Now, let's see." I suddenly feel Lenora's hand come down on my shoulder and I give a shriek. "Alright, Alice! I would think you'd want to study up on the Unova region before our battle."

I raise my eyebrow. _This is a battle, not a test! _"Thing is, a Gym battle's what we really came for."

"Pikachu," my baby on my shoulder says.

Lenora smiles. "Of course you did. That's why I brought you to our library first."

I tilt my head, confused. "Huh?"

"Right," she says. "You see, the only people allowed to use our magnificent library are either researchers or Gym battle challengers."

"Challengers?" She's not making any sense to me.

She walks over to a certain bookcase. "Good. Very good. Knowledge can be very important in a Pokémon battle."

"Yeah...?" I blink.

"Pika," Pikachu whispers.

Lenora points to a book in the bookcase. "I recommend you take a peek at this book."

"You see, I didn't really come to Nacrene City to read," I say reluctantly. _Even though I love reading, I have a Gym battle to win!_

"Pika pika," Pikachu mutters.

Iris leans forward to me. "I could think of worse things to do than read."

"Huh?" I blink. "...Like getting shocked by Pikachu?" She nods.

"Truth is, this may be part of your Gym battle," Cilan whispers to me. "It's quite possible that everything Lenora is saying and doing is simply her method of testing you."

I turn to the Gym Leader. "You mean...this is a test?"

"Pika?" Pikachu tilts his head. Lenora chuckles, staring at me.

I feel my annoyance meter has hit the maximum level, if that makes any sense. I'm sick of all these Gym Leaders messing with my head! First, it was Cilan and his brothers, trying to throw me off with their restaurant, and now it's Lenora with her library. I feel my eye twitch in annoyance.

I let out a loud groan and kind of scream. "Okay! If it'll help get this going with my Gym battle, I'll read anything!" I go over to the book she pointed to earlier. "This one, right?" I pull it to take it out, but suddenly hear a loud noise. I let out a shriek, and so does Pikachu. The bookshelf suddenly moves to reveal a long staircase in the ground, leading to some place underground. "What's down there?"

"Alice, it's the battlefield, of course," Lenora answers, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Tell me, dear, don't you think this young challenger is quite direct?" Hawes asks his wife.

She nods. "I sure do. It's just as Connoisseur Boy was saying." He motions to Cilan as she says the last part.

"Huh?" I tilt my head.

Cilan chuckles nervously. "Connoisseur Boy?"

I hide a giggle at how cute he sounds. Connoisseur Boy. It's a cute nickname. _I'll have to write that one down. _

"You see, I've been testing you since the first moment you walked in here," Lenora says.

My eyes widen. "Huh?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asks.

Lenora smiles at us. "You see, for most challengers, when I recommend they read a book, nine times out of ten they go to whatever book they're most interested in."

Iris gasps. "Wow! From all these?"

"That's correct," Lenora says. "Even though I show them the quickest way to get to my Gym!"

"But why do you do that?" Cilan asks.

"Because most challengers will get sidetracked by reading too much into what I say," Lenora says. "So, in order to rush into the Gym, they usually choose books they're interested in, or thin books they think they can finish quickly. Very interesting, isn't it? I can generally tell what a Trainer's going to be like by how they react to this kind of situation."

_Wow! She must be really intelligent!_

Iris puts her hands on my shoulders and leans over. "Hey! So, what kind of Trainer do you think Alice is?"

"Huh?!" I yelp. _I don't wanna be judged by someone!_

Lenora smiles. "What you see is what you get. Alice rolls aggressively, just as soon as I challenged her. And now, in really interested in how that aggressiveness is going to play itself out when we get on the battlefield."

"I think it will be fairly easy to predict," Hawes says.

Iris and I both feel nervous sweat coming in beads down our foreheads. "Alice, I think they've got your number," Iris says.

"Thanks..." I smile determinedly. "Fine! Then watch and see! Yeah! Check me out all you want! I'm stoked!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"I like your spirit," Lenora says. "Then let's go."

I nod. "Right!"

"Pikachu!" my buddy adds.

We follow Lenora down the stairs and into a huge room with a battlefield. "So, here we are," Lenora announces.

I gasp. "Wow!"

"Pika!" Pikachu says in amazement.

"Awesome!" Iris says.

I run over to the center of the battlefield, unable to contain any excitement in me. "Alright! 'Kay! Let's get it going now!"

"Let's take a deep breath," Lenora suggests. "You're quite impatient. Perhaps you should do a little research into what kind of Gym Leader I am. Don't you think? Like, for example, which Pokémon I'm planning on using today!" She throws a Poké Ball, and Watchog appears. "I believe you two have met."

I nod. "You bet! I thought you were gonna choose Watchog."

"And my other Pokémon! Come out and help!" She throws another Poké Ball, and a small, furry tan colored puppy comes out, tail wagging and yipping with excitement.

Iris squeals. "Oh, it's so cute!" She runs to it and kneels down. "Hello, there!" She pets the puppy, and it jumps into her arms, licking her face. "Cute! I'm so totally in love with your Lillipup!" she says to Lenora.

"Pikachu!" My buddy jumps off my shoulder and lands on the ground to play with Lillipup.

I take out my Pokédex, searching. "Okay. Lillipup."

**Lillipup, the Puppy Pokémon. The long hair covering Lillipup's face is an excellent radar, which senses conditions in the surrounding area. **

"So, those are my two Pokémon," Lenora says, turning to me.

I blink. "Your Pokémon are both Normal-types." And since I don't have any Fighting-types, I'm debating on which Pokémon to use.

"Both Watchog and Lillipup are excellent Pokémon who respond well to Lenora's commands," Hawes says. "They're such excellent Pokémon that they also help out with museum security!"

I look down to see Lillipup, his tail wagging uncontrollably. I kneel down and pick him up. "Hey, there! You're a friendly Pokémon!" He licks my face and I let out a giggle.

"Normal-type Pokémon are perfect for Gym battles," Lenora says. "That's because they don't have any of the limitations of a Pokémon that are bound to a certain element." I giggle as Lillipup continues to run his small tongue along my face. "This allows me the flexibility to respond any strategy challengers may use against me."

I smile at Lillipup. "Lillipup, sure hope you're nice to us today!" I murmur.

Iris glares at me. "Did you even hear what Lenora just said?!" I roll my eyes.

"Showing what Pokémon Lenora is going to use before the battle... What a delightful fragrance!" Cilan comments. "A scent of confidence! A Gym Leader who possesses the combination of testing her challengers first, and then using Normal-type Pokémon, who possess no overwhelming properties at all! A perfect battle recipe!"

Lenora smiles at him. "I'm so pleased to hear you say that, Connoisseur Boy." I giggle at the cute nickname again. "That's precisely the type of battle I just love. Now Hawes, if you would please explain the rules." She turns to her husband.

"Of course, dear," he says, nodding. "Alright. The Nacrene City Gym battle between Alice, the challenger, and Lenora, the Gym Leader, will begin by each selecting two of their Pokémon."

I blink in surprise. "You said two Pokémon?"

He nods. "Correct! It's two-on-two. And when either the Gym Leader or the challenger's Pokémon are left unable to battle, the battle will be decided! In addition, both Pokémon can be freely substituted at any time."

"A two-on-two..." I murmur.

"You can see that each and every Gym has its own unique rules, reflecting the Gym Leader's own unique way of bringing out the best of all their challengers!" Cilan says.

"I've decided who to use first," Lenora says. "I choose Lillipup."

I tilt my head. "Lillipup?" The puppy licks my face once more.

"I wonder who Alice is going with?" I hear Iris ask.

I stand up. "I've got it! Lillipup, get ready!" I put Lillipup down and he runs over to Lenora, wagging his tail. I take two Poké Balls. "Alright. I'm counting on you two." I turn to my friends. "Cilan! Iris! Watch Pikachu for me!"

Iris nods. "Okay!"

"First thing's first," Lenora says. "Watchog, return!" Watchog returns to its Poké Ball. "What do you say we start?"

I smile. "You bet!"

"The Nacrene Gym battle between Lenora and Alice is about to begin!" Hawes announces. "Lenora, the Gym Leader, and Alice, the challenger from Pallet Town! Challenger has the first move! And battle...begin!"

"Lillipup, go!" Lenora shouts. Lillipup runs forward, excited. But as soon as he hits the battlefield, his lips curl up into a snarl, baring sharp, white teeth. He growls threateningly.

I hear Iris gasp. "Oh, my! Lillipup's tough!"

"Quite a change from that cute Pokémon a minute ago," Cilan says. "It must be in battle mode now."

"Go get 'em, Alice!" Iris shouts.

"Axew!" Axew yells.

I turn to thank them, but what I see completely melts my heart. Pikachu, perched on Cilan's shoulder. _It's so adorable!_ I nod to them and turn back to a growling Lillipup. "Lillipup sure looks ready to rock and roll! We're ready, too! Tepig, I choose you!" I throw a Poké Ball, and Tepig appears, ready to battle.

"Wow!" Cilan gasps. "Tepig's got the spirit as well!"

"Tepig knows Alice is trusting it to be great! It wants to live up to that trust," Iris says.

I smirk, ready to get this show on the road. "Now, Tepig! Ember!" Tepig prepares to blow sparks of fire at Lillipup.

"Lillipup, use Roar!" Lenora shouts. Lillipup opens his mouth and lets out a scream, which seems to paralyze Tepig.

Suddenly, Tepig is sucked into a light of red and darts back into my pocket, where its Poké Ball is. Then, a flash of blue light appears, and Oshawott is revealed on the battlefield. Oshawott looks around wildly, obviously scared out of his skin.

"Excellent move..." I hear Cilan murmur.

I blink. "What happened?!"

Lenora smirks. "So, I assume you've never had Roar used against you. You see, Roar is a powerful move that will force one's opponent to switch their Pokémon. Then I'll just switch, too!" She returns Lillipup and throws another Poké Ball. "Watchog, it's your turn, now! Go!" Watchog appears, all ready to fight.

"So, now she's gonna use Watchog," I mutter. "Oshawott, return!"

"Mean Look, let's go!" Watchog's eyes glow with a red color, and many eyes surround Oshawott, like they're watching him intently.

I gasp. "What?! Return!" The red light from the Poké Ball shoots for Oshawott, but breaks off. "Huh? But how?"

"Give it up, Alice," Lenora says. "You're wasting your time. Mean Look is a move that prevents a Pokémon from exiting a battle."

I bite my lip. _I was gonna have Tepig use Ember to throw them off guard and then have Oshawott finish it up with Razor Shell. But now I can't use the combination I wanted!_

"It's not all that difficult to see how off-balanced you are right about now," Lenora's voice snaps me out of my thoughts. "Alice, move on. Oshawott had no choice but to battle."

I glare at her. "Yeah! Let's do it!" I turn to Oshawott. "Your turn just came up a little early! Oshawott, Water Gun!" Not looking energetic, he shoots a blast of water at Watchog.

"Low Kick!" Lenora commands. Watchog slides on his back and kicks poor little Oshawott.

I cringe at how much pain that must've caused him. "Oshawott! Hey, Oshawott! Are you okay?" He gets up and smirks, nodding his head. Now he looks ready to win! "Alright! Now, it's payback time! And we're just getting warmed up!"

Lenora nods at me. "That's the kind of spirit I like! And here's a sample of ours! Alright, Watchog! Use Thunderbolt!" The Pokémon charges with electricity.

I think back to when I first saw Oshawott and he told me he wanted to come with me—Pikachu had shot a Thunderbolt at him and he protected himself by his scalchop. And during my first Gym battle with Cilan, Oshawott had made a Solar Beam attack bounce off him with that little shell. He can do the same thing again right now!

"Deflect it with your scalchop!" Oshawott raises his little scalchop and blocks the stream of lightning from hitting him. "Yeah! Oshawott, way to go!"

Lenora seems surprised and speechless. "Oh... So a Water-type Pokémon is able to guard against Electric-type attacks with that? I'm officially impressed."

I feel like streams of adrenaline are running through my blood. "Alright! Let's counter! Now Oshawott, attack!" The sea otter starts running towards Watchog.

"Watchog, if they want a close range battle, use Low Kick!" Lenora yells. Watchog prepares to kick for Oshawott.

I smirk. "I was waiting for that!"

Lenora raises an eyebrow. "Waiting?!"

"Quick, Oshawott!" I scream. "Jump up and over Watchog!" Following my commands, Oshawott is soon in the air over Watchog.

"What's going on?!" Lenora gasps.

"Now, Water Gun, let's go!" I yell. Oshawott lets cold water shoot from his mouth at Watchog. It lands with a critical hit.

Iris gasps. "It worked!"

"Alice has always been good with the element of surprise," Cilan says.

I smile to myself at his compliment. He probably has no idea how much they mean to me. "Way to go!" I yell to Oshawott. "Now, keep up the attacks! Use Razor Shell!"

"Watchog, knock Oshawott away with your tail!" Lenora orders. Getting up from his back, Watchog flips and his tail collides with Oshawott's scalchop. The shell flies out of Oshawott's hands, leaving him terribly confused. "Thunderbolt, let's go!" Watchog shocks Oshawott with a powerful stream of lightning, knocking the poor sea otter out.

"Oshawott is unable to battle! So Watchog wins!" Hawes announces.

Biting my lip until I can taste the sharp tang of blood, I take out Oshawott's Poké Ball. "Oshawott, return!" He does. "Oshawott, you were great!" I put the Poké Ball away. "I was planning on surprising them by using Water Gun and finishing it up with Razor Shell, but my close range strategy didn't work."

"Now Watchog, return!" Watchog returns to his Poké Ball.

I raise my eyebrow. "You're switching Pokémon?"

She nods. "Yes! This is starting to be fun! Lillipup, your turn!" The cute but threatening pup appears.

I look at Tepig's Poké Ball. "Alright. I guess our battle boil's down to this. Remember our training! Tepig, I choose you!" I throw it and Tepig appears, ready for a battle. "Now, use Tackle!" Tepig charges for Lillipup in a flash.

"Dodge it, quick!" Lenora shouts.

In a quick second, Lillipup just misses getting hit with Tepig. I gasp. "Whoa. That's fast!"

"Use Shadow Ball!" Lillipup forms a black ball and shoots it at Tepig, which hits directly.

"Tepig! No!" I scream. Tepig struggles to his paws. "Stay strong and use Ember!"

"Lillipup, Take Down, let's go!" Lenora yells.

Tepig blows fire sparks at a charging Lillipup, but they don't seem to be doing a thing. "Why won't Ember work?!" I mutter. Lillipup slams into Tepig, knocking him out. "No..."

"Tepig is unable to battle! So Lillipup wins! And the victor is Lenora, the Gym Leader!" Hawes announces. Lillipup gives a cheer of triumph.

I kneel down to a depressed Tepig. "Thanks a lot, Tepig. You battled really hard." He looks down in sadness. "Come on. Don't look so sad."

Pikachu runs to us. "Pika pika?"

I hang my head. "Truth is, it was my fault, not yours that we lost this. I'm really sorry you've got a weak Trainer, like me." _I should've thought of a better strategy to help us, but no. I had to stick to my old one, which was completely hopeless and useless. _

"Alice?" I look up to see Iris and Cilan.

"Ashamed about the battle?" Cilan asks gently.

I avoid their eyes. "Both Oshawott and Tepig battled really hard for me. But still, I guess I've got a lot to learn." I stand up. "Excuse me, Lenora? Thanks very much for battling against me."

She smiles at me. "I like your attitude, Alice. You really got spirit. Come challenge me anytime!"

At sunset, while waiting at the Pokémon Center for Tepig and Oshawott to come out, I rest my head on the Egg Case and sigh, too depressed about my loss.

"Alice?" Iris asks. "This isn't like you at all, getting all sad and depressed like this."

Without looking at her, I answer. "How can I not be depressed? Everything in the battle today went totally wrong."

My buddy hangs his head. "Pika," he whimpers. I can tell he hates seeing me like this.

"Leading off with Roar was quite painful," Cilan comments.

"Yeah, and then she followed it up with Mean Look and stopped Oshawott," I continue. "From that moment on, nothing went the way I planned it, no matter what!"

Despite how sad and depressed I feel, it feels good talking about the battle with my friends. It kinda takes some of the pressure off my chest.

"You were forced to switch Pokémon right after the battle started, which would've thrown off anyone," Iris points out.

"Yew," Axew agrees, coming out of her hair. I sigh.

Cilan leans back next to me. "Much to be learned from this. You would do well to become more like Lenora so you can deal with anything in battle that might happen to come up."

My eyes shift to meet his. "Yeah, you're right."

"You should also train your Pokémon so their power and speed improves," he adds. "Tepig and Oshawott just can't keep up how things are right now."

Iris nods. "Yeah! And you need to think on your feet and react faster!"

"Pika!" Pikachu adds.

I feel my annoyance meter hit the brim again, and I groan in frustration. "I know that! I am not done by a long shot! See, now that I know Lenora's battle style, I won't let me getting beat count for nothing!"

Pikachu smiles. "Pika pikachu!"

I turn to him. "Next time, we'll win for sure!"

Nurse Joy comes out with Audino, rolling a cart with my sea otter and fire pig on it. "Sorry to keep you all waiting," she apologizes. "Your Pokémon are both feeling much better now."

I smile at her. "Thanks a lot, Nurse Joy."

Tepig blows small flames out of his snout, and Oshawott stomps on the cart ferociously. I can see they're both very determined.

"Tepig and Oshawott look as determined as I've ever seen them!" Iris says, smiling.

I stand up, nodding to them. "That's the determination I know! Alright! We're gonna do some serious training, and then challenge Lenora one more time!" They cheer.

"If you want to do some real training, why don't you visit the Pokémon Battle Club?" Joy suggests.

I blink. "Pokémon Battle Club? Would that be really good for special training?"

"Yeah!" Iris pipes up. "If you want special training, then go to a specialist!"

"Don George is always available for good battle advice," Cilan adds.

"I'll also bet you that Don George just might be willing and able to give you some tips on how to beat Lenora." Joy winks and chuckles.

The next morning, when the sun rises, all three of us are already at the Battle Club, facing the battle manager. "If it's battle related, I'm your man! I welcome you to the Pokémon Battle Club!"

I chuckle nervously. "You look exactly like the other Don Georges, too."

"So, exactly what kind of battle can I help you with?" he asks.

I stare at him. "Yesterday, I challenged Lenora to a battle over at the Nacrene Gym." I quickly tell the whole story, from the moment I met her until the moment I walked out of her Gym, depressed about my loss.

He nods. "I understand. So, you were roundly defeated by all of Lenora's tricks. Lillipup's Roar and Watchog's Mean Look extends the reason she's still using them both."

My eyes widen. "Wow! You're right! And I wasn't able to keep up with either of her Pokémon! They were fast."

He nods. "Right. Fast they are."

"So her combination is famous!" Iris gasps.

"Everyone seems to be taken in by Lenora's quick pace," Cilan says. "I'll bet you if you could match her speed, then I think she could be roundly defeated."

"I do know exactly what you're looking for," Don George says. "So get ready! You've come to the right place for some hard training!"

I smile, feeling the familiar flame of excitement burn in my stomach. "Awesome! I'll do whatever it takes!"

Pikachu tightens his grip on my shoulders. "Pika pikachu!"

"Very well, but I warn you, Alice," he says. "My brand of special training is not for the faint heart, get it?"

I nod. "Yeah!"

He smiles. "Alright! Follow me through these doors."

The doors behind him open to reveal a blinding white light that's almost unbearable to look at, but I force my eyes open to face the challenges of the training that lie ahead of me behind these doors.

_I'm ready. And I will beat Lenora. _


	16. Rematch at the Nacrene Gym!

Rematch at the Nacrene Gym!

Chapter 16

Rematch at the Nacrene Gym!

The light fades away to reveal a huge room, filled with many types of training equipment. I gasp at the variety of machines to use to power up your Pokémon and their moves.

"You are now standing in our Pokémon Battle Club's Training Room," Don George says. "You may train till your heart's content."

I smile at him and nod. "Great! Thanks a lot, Don George!"

"Let's start with Tepig," he suggests. "Tepig will be using that machine." He points to a special treadmill.

I stare at the machine. "Wow!" I throw Tepig's Poké Ball. "Tepig, let's go!"

He appears and chants his name, blowing small flames out of his snout. He looks determined.

"First off, the key to defeating Gym Leader Lenora is raising your Pokémon's speed and powering up their moves," Don George informs us.

I turn to my fire pig. "Tepig, are you ready to train super hard?"

He nods determinedly. "Tepig!"

"And you." Suddenly, the battle manager pushes me forward, and I stumble onto the treadmill with Tepig. Pikachu jumps off my shoulder. "You have to train hard as well, Alice."

I tilt my head. "Huh?"

"When Lenora and her Pokémon use the Roar and Mean Look combination, a challenger needs to stay calm, focused, and able to make quick decisions," the battle manager explains. "So, as your Pokémon's Trainer, rigorous training is vitally important."

Smiling, I nod. "Got it. I'm in! Let's go!" I turn to Tepig, ready as anything, and feel the treadmill start. I walk at a steady pace, which turns into a jog. I look to see Tepig running with effort. I nod to him. "Yeah, Tepig! Way to go!"

"I'm upping the speed!" Don George warns us.

Without looking at him, I nod. "Right!" He pushes a button and the treadmill starts to go faster. I start to run next to Tepig. "This training is a piece of cake!"

"Alright," Don George says. "That's enough warm up. Moving on to the next step."

Suddenly, cannons come out of the wall in front of us, and aim at us. My eyes widen. "Huh?!"

I turn to Don George, who explains it. "The real training begins now. I want you to dodge and counter what you will imagine are Shadow Balls."

A black ball, similar to a kickball, shoots out from one of the cannons and goes for Tepig. Luckily, the fire pig is able to dodge it.

I nod to him. "You're doing great, Tepig!" Suddenly, a ball smacks into my face, and I yelp, falling back onto the floor. I whimper as I feel a red spot on my nose. Thank Arceus no blood comes out.

"Alice, no!" Cilan and Iris run to me. Cilan looks at me, looking worried. "Alice, are you okay?"

Aww! He cares!

"Pikachu?" My buddy runs to me, whimpering.

Iris rolls her eyes. "Come on, Alice. You couldn't dodge that. You're such a kid."

Axew comes out of her hair. "Yew yew!"

I sit up and groan, but then smile at them. Well, I'm mostly directing the smile to Cilan. "They caught me off guard! So, can we try that again?"

I turn to Don George, who nods. "Yes, that's the spirit!"

Soon enough, Tepig and I are back on the treadmill, running with almost every ounce of our energy. "Yeah! 'Kay. Let's do this!"

"Alright," Don George says. "Dodge and counter. Remember: Lenora's Shadow Balls aren't gonna be as easy to deal with."

Black balls shoot at Tepig and I, but we dodge them, some of them being very close calls. I can't tell you how many of them brushed past my flesh, stinging it.

"Wow!" I hear Iris gasp. "They're getting the hang of it!"

"Axew!" her partner cheers.

I see the emerald-eyed connoisseur smile at me. "Excellent, Alice!" I blush under his praise.

"I'm raising the speed," Don George says. "Stay on your toes! Now, prepare for Shadow Balls from behind!"

More cannons emerge from behind us, and shoot for us. Without turning to Tepig, I yell to him. "Counter them with Ember!"

Tepig turns to the side and blows sparks of fire at the balls. Surprisingly, they do nothing, and the balls slam into us, and we crash to the floor, groaning.

"Alice!" Iris yelps.

I sit up, rubbing my side, where I feel a bruise forming. Sheesh! This special training creates a new mark on my body no matter what! "Man! We need more power!" I turn to Tepig as I say that. He snorts and nods.

"If you both continue to train the way you are, speed and power will increase," Don George informs us. "But you can only attain that higher state as a team."

Nodding, I get up, Tepig in my arms. "Got it!"

"Tepig!" my fire pig snorts.

We continue to race on the treadmill, dodging and countering more balls that shoot for us. When the treadmill stops, Tepig and I are on the floor, breathing heavily. Man! Special training can take a whole lot outta you!

Iris smiles at me. "You know, Alice, I think you're a lot faster than when you first started."

Cilan nods. "It's true, but still. You'll need more depth and sharpness to beat Lenora."

Don George steps forward and looks at me. "That's enough for now. It's a good time to give Tepig a rest. It's also a good time to train with Oshawott."

"Right!" I nod.

Pikachu and I are lead to a pool inside the battle room. I gasp at the huge pool. "Wow... 'Kay. Oshawott, you're up!" I throw his Poké Ball and he appears.

"Oshawott!" He cheers and jumps into the water, starting to swim.

I frown. "Oshawott! Hey, what are you doing?! Chill out! Save it! We didn't come here to play, you know."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds. But

Oshawott just keeps on swimming in the clear water. He soon gets the point, and stops, staring at me with black eyes.

"That's right," Don George says. "You all came here to train hard!"

Taking a deep breath, I jump and dive into the water, hitting it in a split second. I swim over to Oshawott and smile at the small sea otter. "Time to train! Get it?" He tilts his head, slowly nodding.

"I'm creating a current in the pool," Don George says, standing over a control machine. "Swimming against a current will allow you to strengthen your muscles and build up your stamina at the same time."

Looking back at Oshawott, I nod. "We've got it!" A current floods towards us, and Oshawott and I start to swim. I see Oshawott swimming with almost all his energy. "Keep it up, Oshawott!"

"Oshawott, swim with everything you've got, or you won't be able to keep up with Lenora!" Don George yells.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu adds. Oshawott nods, swimming with more force.

Suddenly, a huge wave is created in the pool and crashes down on me and Oshawott. I'm engulfed in water, and I reach the surface, spitting out water. I see Oshawott floating towards me, so I grab him, hugging him close to my body.

I smile down at the frightened sea otter. "Gotcha! You're safe now. Come on. We've got more training. Let's do it!"

Seeing the huge wave, I turn to Oshawott and he nods. I throw him into it and he slides up it, jumping into the air once he reaches the very top of the wave.

"Slide down the waterfall!" Don George yells to him. Oshawott dives down and slides down, closing his eyes. He's suddenly covered in an extra coat of bright blue water. I gasp. "Now Oshawott, aim for the target!"

Oshawott and the water blast around him aim for the target and it looks like he'll hit the dead center, but he suddenly goes down and crashes into the ground. He blinks in surprise.

Iris and Cilan run over to him. "So cool!" Iris gasps. "Did Oshawott just use Aqua Jet?"

"Yeah, although it had the flavor of being a bit unsteady," Cilan says.

I smile and stand up, getting out of the water. "Aqua Jet? Alright! Oshawott knows Aqua Jet!" I suddenly slip and fall into the pool, yelping. I swim to he surface, coughing out water.

"You alright?" the battle manager asks me.

I nod. "Yeah." I turn to Oshawott, who's in the water again. "Wow! I can't believe you learned that move! Great job, Oshawott!"

He blushes, like I do whenever Cilan compliments or praises me. "Oshawott."

Later that night, Tepig and I are back on the treadmill, running with everything we have. "Put everything you've got into it!" Don George yells to us. "Faster! Faster! Push it to the limit!" Tepig and I do, and I feel streams of adrenaline flowing through my body. Tepig uses an Ember attack on a ball, and it's sent flying backwards.

"Great!" Cilan says. "Their training is showing solid results, since Tepig's much faster now, and its Ember is starting to show real power!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers.

I turn to Tepig. "We're gonna beat Lenora for sure! What do you say, Tepig!"

He glares with determination ahead of him. "Tepig!" Suddenly, he's engulfed in a cloud of fire, and I gasp, knowing what this means.

"Alright!"

The next morning, I stand in a certain Gym Leader's battlefield, staring her in the eye. I'm not going to lose today. And that's a promise.

"You're back," Lenora says, surprised. "I've been waiting." I smirk. "That confident look on your face tells me you've been training a lot."

I smile with pride. "We've been working with Don George over at the Pokémon battle Club. And I'm gonna win that badge this time for sure!"

Lenora smiles. "Well, it certainly hasn't done anything to dampen your spirit. So you can expect double from me!"

I tilt my head. "What do you mean?"

"Look!" She holds two Poké Balls in her hands. "You'll be facing off against these Pokémon."

She throws them, and Watchog appears, along with another Pokémon I've never seen before. It looks like a slightly older and bigger version of Lillipup.

I take out my Pokédex. "Watchog and...who's that Pokémon?"

**Herdier, the Loyal Dog Pokémon, and the evolved form of Lillipup. Herdier's hard black fur softens its opponent's attacks like armor. **

"Lillipup evolved, so Lenora's using a different Pokémon to battle," Iris says.

"Axew!" her Dragon-type adds.

"Lenora must be trying to bring out Alice's strength," Cilan murmurs. "And the best way was to evolve Lillipup into Herdier."

I smirk. "Alright! Herdier's stronger than Lillipup for sure. Yeah! I am so psyched!"

Lenora smiles. "I'm glad you like my little surprise, Alice. Herdier will also be your first opponent." She holds up Watchog's Poké Ball, and he returns, leaving Herdier on the battlefield.

"We're ready!" I say. "You're gonna see jur how hard we trained! Alright! Tepig, I choose you!" I throw his Poké Ball, and he appears, blowing flames out of his snout. Lenora chuckles. "Tepig, that's the spirit!"

Hawes steps forward. "The Nacrene Gym battle rematch challenge will now get underway! Between Gym Leader Lenora and the challenger Alice Ketchum from Pallet Town. This is a two-on-two battle. First move is the challenger's. Let the battle begin!"

I don't hesitate. "Tepig, use Ember!" Tepig blows the sparks at Herdier, but he doesn't dodge them. In the back of my mind, I wonder why.

"Quick, Herdier!" Lenora shouts. "Use Protect!" Herdier blocks the sparks of fire with a protective blue coat. "Now, Shadow Ball!" Creating a ring of black balls of power, Herdier shoots them at Tepig.

I glare and grit my teeth. "Tepig, dodge it!" He does. "Let 'em have it with Ember!" Tepig shoots the fire sparks, which connect with some of the Shadow Ball attacks.

Lenora looks surprised and smiles at me. "Excellent! All that training made Tepig much faster, and powered up its moves as well."

Tepig lands in front of me, looking as fierce as he can. "Offense, Tepig. Tackle, let's go!" My fire pig charges for Watchog.

"Show them they're wasting their time with Roar!" Lenora yells.

Herdier lets out a loud roar, and Tepig disappears in a flash of red. And in a flash of blue, Oshawott appears on the battlefield, looking a little bit more energized then last time he was unexpectedly called out to battle.

Lenora returns Herdier. "We'll exchange as well! Watchog, come on out!" Watchog appears. "Watchog, use Mean Look!" Watchog closes his eyes and Oshawott is surrounded by many eyes, watching and staring him down.

I smirk. "Of course! First off, you used Roar, and then you used Mean Look. So you're using that strategy again!"

Lenora raises her eyebrow. "Well, if you knew this was coming, I hope you came up with some sort of counter strategy."

I smile. "You bet I did! Alright! Oshawott, Razor Shell!" Extending into a full weapon, Oshawott grabs his scalchop and charges towards Watchog.

"Alright, Watchog!" Lenora yells. "Dodge it!" But Watchog's too slow for my speedy sea otter. Oshawott races and slashes his scalchop at Watchog, who falls back in pain and shock. "Well, I see that Oshawott's a lot faster, too."

"Yeah!" I say. "So, time for a new move! Oshawott, Aqua Jet!" Oshawott is covered in water, and aims for Watchog. But unexpectedly, he smashes into the ground instead, completely missing his target. I cringe. "Oshawott!" He gets up. "Are you okay?" He nods. "Then use Aqua Jet again!" He does, but still crashes into the ground. "No, Oshawott! Oshawott..." He shakes his head.

Lenora smiles. "You two are really something. Oshawott is much faster, and even learned Aqua Jet. Although, it looks like that move has quite a way to go. You don't have enough to defeat me!"

I glare at her. "Don't be so sure! Oshawott, use Water Gun!" Oshawott blasts water at Watchog, but it dodges.

"Watchog, Confuse Ray, go!" Lenora yells. Watchog gathers balls of yellow power and shoots them at the small sea otter, who, once hit, sways side to side, looking lost.

I gasp. "What's going on?!"

Lenora smirks. "You can train all you want, but if your Pokémon's confused, it won't mean a thing, don't ya think?" I growl. "It's our turn, Watchog! I think we'll use Thunderbolt!"

As Watchog crackles with lightning, I bite my lip. There's only one thing to try to protect Oshawott. "Deflect it with Razor Shell!" Oshawott takes his scalchop, which blocks the stream of lightning. Suddenly, he seems to lose his grip on the scalchop and is shocked. I growl to myself. "Oshawott, use Water Gun and show 'em what you've got!"

Oshawott seems to blast for Watchog, but shoots at the wall instead. I face-palm, turning to the sea otter.

"Oshawott! We're gonna win! Now, Aqua Jet, let's go!" He's covered in water and aims for Watchog.

"I'd say let's finish this up!" Lenora yells. "Watchog, Thunderbolt!"

I turn to Oshawott, who...seems to be aiming in the right direction! "Do it!"

Oshawott smashes into Watchog from the ceiling, creating a huge smokey cloud. When it eventually clears, I look for my sea otter. Him and Watchog are on the ground, both knocked out.

"Oshawott!" I scream.

"Watchog, no!" Lenora yells.

"Watchog and Oshawott are both unable to battle!" Hawes announces.

I hold out Oshawott's Poké Ball and he returns. I look at it with love. "Great, Oshawott. You deserve a good rest."

Lenora smiles at me. "What do you know? Alice's Oshawott defeated my Watchog. But I'm afraid your luck is not gonna last. Herdier, let's go!" The dog appears, ready to battle.

I throw out another Poké Ball. "Tepig, I choose you!" He appears. "Alright! Tepig, use Ember!"

"Protect, quick!" Lenora shouts.

As Tepig shoots out sparks towards the dog, Herdier covers himself with a blue shield. I grit my teeth. "Tackle, let's go!" Tepig charges at Herdier and slams into him at full force. I smirk. "Now Tepig, Tackle once again!" Tepig runs towards Herdier.

"Use Shadow Ball!" Lenora yells.

Herdier creates another ring of Shadow Balls and shoots them at Tepig. The fire pig dodges two of them, but loses his focus and is hit with the third one. He falls to the ground.

"Tepig, are you okay?!" I yelp. He opens one eye and whimpers.

"Alice, what a bond you two have!" Lenora compliments. "Tepig wants to live up to your expectations no matter what! But as the Nacrene Gym Leader, I have expectations, too: to give it all I've got! Herdier, Giga Impact!"

Herdier glows with power and flies for Tepig, smashing into him with full force. I yelp in surprise. I can't lose this battle! Not after all that hard work and special training!

"Tepig!" I whimper. "Hang in there, Tepig! You can still battle 'cause you're strong! Don't forget I believe in you!"

As if a miracle just happened, Tepig pants and stands up, breathing heavily. The poor thing's tired and beat, but won't give up. I nod to him.

"Herdier, use Shadow Ball!" Lenora commands. Herdier throws three more attacks at my fire pig.

I glare. "Tepig, dodge it!" Jumping around the balls, Tepig dodges each and every one of them, panting, but glaring determinedly.

"Tepig's almost finished, so keep up the pressure!" Lenora says. "Shadow Ball! Herdier, let's go!" Herdier forms more Shadow Ball attacks and throws them at Tepig.

"Get going, Tepig!" I scream. "Dodge them all!" He does. "Alright! Now show 'em that fire power!" He starts running to charge up with fire.

"Herdier, use Giga Impact!" Herdier throws his glowing-with-power body towards Tepig.

I bite my lip. "Show 'em how strong you are! Now, Flame Charge, go!" Coated in flames, Tepig charges at Herdier.

"Go, Tepig!" Iris and Cilan shout in unison.

"Axew!"

"Pika!"

Glowing with power and fire, Herdier and Tepig collide, and create a huge smoke cloud. I shield my eyes to prevent any of the dust from getting in my eyes, and cover my mouth. I open my eyes to see Tepig and Herdier, both lying on the ground.

I feel my knees get weak. "Tepig!" There's a whimper in my voice.

"Herdier!" Lenora yells. "Get up! Get up!"

I bite my trembling lip. "Come on, Tepig! Get up!" Struggling to their feet, both Pokémon get up, shaking violently. They stare each other down and seem to challenge the other to fall down first. Not one of them blinks and/or moves.

Until Herdier collapses.

"Herdier is unable to battle!" Hawes yells. "Tepig is the winner, which also means the victory goes to Alice Ketchum, the challenger!"

I blink. I...won?! I feel a huge smile form on my lips. "Alright! Tepig! Tepig!" I run to him and kneel down, squeezing him in a right embrace. "We did it, Tepig!"

He snorts in happiness. "Tepig!"

"Alice!" Cilan yells. I turn to see him, Iris, Axew and Pikachu run towards me.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheers, hopping onto my shoulder.

"Alice, that was awesome!" Iris says. "You two did it!"

I smile with pride. "We did. Thanks for cheering us on!"

Cilan gives me a smile that completely melts my heart. "Tepig's Flame Charge was great! As a matter of fact, it was a great recipe for a battle! Train hard, win hard!"

"Connoisseur Boy's right," Lenora says, coming to us. I smile again at the adorable nickname. "You really are something else, Alice."

Hawes nods in agreement. "Right! Who would've thought you'd use Flame Charge when you did? You really caught the two of us by surprise!"

Lenora smiles. "All kidding aside, I really admire your battle style."

"Thanks very much, Lenora," I say, petting Pikachu on his head.

"Here." She holds out a box with a small badge. "This is the Basic Badge. Good luck in future battles, and keep believing in all of your Pokémon,"

I smile. "I will." I take the badge and feel like exploding. "How great is this? I've got the Basic Badge!" My Pokémon cheer for me.

"Alice, here's your Pokémon Egg," Joy says, handing me the case.

I take it. "Thanks, Nurse Joy. You've been a big help."

She smiles. "Thank you. I have your Egg a thorough exam. It's in great health! And it should hatch really soon!"

I gasp in surprise. "Wow! Really?"

She nods. "Yes. So please, make sure you take good care of it."

"Right." I nod.

Outside, Iris and I look over Cilan's shoulders, who looks on his Town Map. "Let's see... The closest city with a Gym... Castelia City!"

"The Castelia Gym!" Iris says. "So Alice, are you going to challenge it?"

I nod. "You bet! And I'm gonna win my third Gym badge there, too!"

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu cheers.


	17. Scraggy—Hatched to Be Wild!

Scraggy—Hatched to Be Wild!

Chapter 17  
Scraggy—Hatched to Be Wild!

I sit on a huge rock with Pikachu on my shoulder, and my Badge Case in my hand. I open the case up, admiring my two badges.

"Just six more," I whisper. "Let's make it happen, Pikachu."

His grip tightens on my shoulder. "Pika!"

Suddenly, I hear Axew start to yell frantically. I don't bother looking, since he probably just tripped or fell over a pebble. He does that a lot.

"Axew, what's going on?" Iris asks. She suddenly gasps. "Alice! The Egg is glowing!"

Raising my eyebrow, I turn around. "Hm?" My eyes widen. "Wow! It's true!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers.

I run over to it, taking the case into my arms and holding it, Iris, Axew, Pikachu and Cilan gathered around me. The Egg glows and shakes, signaling it's about to hatch.

"When it glows, you know what that means," Cilan says. "It won't be long before it's going to hatch."

I smile wider and hold it up to the light. "Alright! Wow!" I turn to my buddy on my shoulder. "I can't wait to see what kind of Pokémon it is, Pikachu. You know?"

He coos. "Pika pikachu!"

I gently take the Egg out of the case and place it on the ground, my friends and I sitting around it. It keeps shaking and glowing faintly.

Axew looks at the Egg expectantly, and irks smiles. "Of course! I guess you've never seen a Pokémon Egg hatch before, have you, Axew?"

He turns to her. "Yew?"

Pikachu smiles, wagging his cute tail. "Pika pika!"

"Everyone's really excited, aren't they?" Cilan asks.

"Axew, you're going to be a big brother soon!" Iris says. Axew blinks and blushes, cheering. "You're thrilled! Yay!"

Suddenly, Axew falls down, knocking into the Egg and making it roll away. It rolls down the hill with a fast pace. I spring to my feet. "Come back!" I start running after it.

"Hold on!" Cilan yells.

"Catch that Egg!" Iris screams after me.

I ignore her and try to focus on avoiding tumbling down the hill, since I tend to do that while running down them. I feel my legs begin to tire out, though. "Wait up!" I yell.

Pikachu runs for the Egg. "Pika!"

"Please! Stop!" Iris gasps as the Egg hits a rock and soars through the air.

I glare. "Alright! Pikachu, Quick Attack!"

Pikachu charges for the Egg at an amazing speed. As the Egg falls towards another rock, which could snap it in little pieces in seconds, Pikachu jumps out of the bushes and wraps his tiny arms around the Egg, tumbling to the ground.

I gasp and run to my electric mouse. "Pikachu! You okay?!"

He gets up and shakes his head, smiling. "Pi pikachu."

"And the Egg...?" I dare to ask the question.

He hands it over. "Pikachu."

I sigh heavily with relief. "Yes! Great job, Pikachu!" He coos in happiness.

Iris and Cilan catch up to us. "Is the Egg alright?" Iris asks frantically.

I nod. "It's fine."

"Pika pika." Pikachu sets the Egg on the ground gently.

"Pikachu, thanks," Iris says.

Pikachu blushes and smiles. "Pika!"

Iris turns to me, looking extremely guilty over what just happened. "I'm sorry, Alice."

"Axew," Axew whimpers.

I shrug and brush it off. "Aw, don't worry about it, Iris. The Egg's safe."

"Thank goodness nothing went wrong!" Cilan sighs. Suddenly, the Egg starts to glow again. "Look! It's hatching!"

We kneel down to it and watch it intently. My eyes are glued onto the sight before me, and I smile as I see a small crack in the Egg, slightly getting bigger.

"I am so psyched!" Iris squeals.

The Egg bursts into pieces and in a flashing light, a cute tannish Pokémon comes out, looking at us with wide eyes. "Scraggy! Scrag scrag!"

Cilan gasps. "It's a Scraggy!"

I tilt my head. "A Scraggy?" I take out my Pokédex and hold it to the new creature.

**Scraggy, the Shedding Pokémon. The lower half of Scraggy's body is covered by a tough rubbery skin and when someone makes eye contact it responds with Headbutt. **

I look at it, carefull not to make direct eye contact. "I'm Alice. Nice to meet you!"

He nods. "Scraggy!"

"Pika! Pikachu!" My buddy waves to the newcomer.

Scraggy turns to Pikachu and glares fiercely, while Pikachu seems to shrink under his gaze.

"It's Leer!" Cilan realizes. "What do you know?"

Suddenly, Scraggy pulls his head back and brings it down for Pikachu, but my buddy dodges, resulting in Scraggy skidding on the ground on its face.

I cringe. "That was Headbutt!" Cilan says.

"Why'd it do that?" I ask.

Iris looks at Scraggy, and then at Axew. "Yeah. What's the deal?"

"Yew," Axew sighs.

I turn to Scraggy as he gets up. "So, why did you use Headbutt? Does that mean you wanna battle?"

Scraggy's eyes widen. "Scrag?!" He glares at Pikachu, and seems to agree.

Pikachu flinches. "Pika?"

I turn to my baby. "Great! Have a battle with Scraggy as a welcome gift."

He gives me a scared look. "Pika?!"

-

While Pikachu stands on one side of a battlefield, and Scraggy on the other, I take out my Pokédex, checking something. "Now, let's see what moves Scraggy knows."

**Scraggy's moves are Leer and Headbutt. **

Iris frowns. "What? That's it?!"

I turn to her, glaring slightly. "Well, Axew only knows Scratch and Dragon Rage," I point out, defending Scraggy.

Iris blushes with embarrassment. "Guess you're right. Hehe."

"Also, remember, Scraggy just hatched," Cilan adds.

I smile. "There you go!" I turn to the two Pokémon. "Okay! Scraggy, Leer!"

Since Leer will lower its opponent's defense right away, I figure it's a good way to start off the battle, and then attack with a powerful move.

Scraggy runs forward and glares at Pikachu. My baby shrinks, but doesn't seem too affected by it.

I frown. "Huh?"

"It doesn't look like it did a thing," Cilan says.

I'm not giving up. "Alright! Scraggy, use Headbutt next!" Scraggy headbutts Pikachu, who cries out, but realizes no damage has been done. "It doesn't seem to be doing anything... 'Kay, Pikachu! Counterattack! Use Thunderbolt, let's go! ...Maybe a bit more like Thunder Burp." Pikachu sparks with electricity, and touches his paw to Scraggy, who yelps as a result. "Oh, no! Scraggy, are you okay?" He seems pretty worn out.

He stumbles up and glares fiercely at Pikachu, not giving up. "Scraggy still seems raring to go," Cilan says.

I smirk. "Yeah! Scraggy's up for a battle even after that! My kind of Pokémon!" I so badly want Scraggy as my own!

I hear Iris muttering to Axew. "You know what? It looks like your little brother's kind of a pain." He nods in agreement.

Throwing my four Poké Balls, I yell. "Come on out, everybody!" Pidove, Snivy, Oshawott and Tepig appear. "I want you all to meet our new friend, so say hello to Scraggy!" They cheer their hellos.

Pidove steps forward and waves her wing as a greeting. She seems friendly, but makes the mistake of making eye contact with Scraggy. He glares and slams his head into hers, making her yelp and run off, scared.

I cringe. "That wasn't what I meant."

"I highly doubt Pidove was expecting Headbutt," Cilan says, chuckling.

Oshawott steps forward next and smiles. Scraggy also Headbutts him, but Oshawott doesn't run off like a frightened Pidove. He glares and yells at Scraggy, and Pikachu and Tepig have to pull him away. But Oshawott breaks free and runs back to Scraggy, but the Shedding Pokémon just uses Headbutt again, knocking Oshawott's scalchop off. It lands on the ground and Scraggy places his foot on it, challenging Oshawott. The sea otter pulls it out from Scraggy's foot and slashes the newly hatched Pokémon fiercely.

"No!" Iris yelps.

Scraggy stumbles back to me, where I kneel down. "Um...are you alright?" I ask him.

"Pikachu?" My buddy tilts his head.

Scraggy jumps up, and I yelp in pain as his head connects with my chin. I sit back, whimpering. "Hey, Scraggy!" I yell as he rushes for Oshawott.

He hits Oshawott, but the sea otter reacts with Water Gun. Scraggy pulls up his "pants" as a protective source, which deflects the Water Gun attack.

"Wow..." Cilan murmurs.

I get up, still holding my red chin. "So that's how Scraggy defends..." Scraggy glares at a scared Tepig, and uses Headbutt again. "Scraggy's attacking everything in sight!"

"I have to agree," Cilan says.

"Power's a good thing, but..." Iris's voice trails off.

I notice Scraggy has stars in his eyes, and is swaying side to side. "It doesn't seem to matter right now," Cilan points out. "Scraggy does look rather dizzy after all of those Headbutts."

I blink, realizing he's right. "Whoa!"

Iris giggles. "That's funny!" I glare at her. Scraggy soon catches sight of Snivy, who sits on a nearby rock, as peaceful as she can be. Scraggy goes for her, but ends up hitting the rock, since she jumps out of the way. "No!"

He shakes his head and runs for Snivy, but the vines come out of her neck and she places them on his head, stopping him from getting too close to her. He gets tired of struggling to get to her, and collapses.

I kneel down to him. "Don't you think you've done enough for now?" He suddenly leaps up and smacks me right in the head. This time, I don't even bother getting up, since the pain's too much. But I do see Scraggy glaring at Axew, and the Dragon-type hides in Iris's hair for safety and refuge.

-

When sunset comes, and the three of us are having dinner, I notice Scraggy's not eating with us. He just sits on a rock, staring off away from us.

I get up and go over to him. "Scraggy? Why don't you come over and eat with the gang?" He shakes his head.

"I haven't got the foggiest idea what Scraggy's thinking," Iris sighs.

"Perhaps Scraggy's in shock when it was beaten by Alice's other Pokémon," Cilan suggests.

I then back to Scraggy. "Is that true?"

He turns and starts hopping away onto the other rocks. "Scrag!"

I whimper. Maybe it's best to just leave him alone right now. He needs some time to cool down.

At night, when my other Pokémon are all safe in their Poké Balls, I place a bowl of Pokémon food down for Scraggy. Seeing the food, he jumps up from behind the rocks and starts eating.

"Great!" I say. "Scraggy's finally eating Pokémon food!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu cheers.

"Now if only Scraggy would eat with everyone else," Iris sighs.

I take out a Poké Ball. "'Kay, Scraggy. It's about time for you to get in you're Poké Ball." He frowns and runs back towards the rocks, glaring. "What? You don't wanna?"

He glares at me. "Scrag scrag scrag!"

"Maybe Scraggy wants to stay out because it was just hatched," Cilan says.

I sigh. I hope you're right.

We settle down in our sleeping bags, and in no time, I feel myself drifting off to sleep. I close my eyes and keep my breathing steady, falling fast asleep.

~~~~~  
_The sun shines down on two figures in a meadow of freshly cut grass, the wind blowing in a gentle breeze. I look closely to see that one of the figures is me, cuddled up to a certain boy. His arms are wrapped around my waist, and mine are around his neck. His beautiful emerald eyes sparkle with love and affection, and not a single tint of lust. Just love. The boy leans in towards my figure and gently kisses me, pulling me closer. _

"Wake up, guys!" Iris screams.

My eyes shoot open and I sit up, glaring at her for interrupting my beautiful dream. "What's up?!" My voice tries to sound fierce, but it's full of tiredness.

"Pika?" Pikachu yawns.

Iris looks worried. "Alice, Scraggy's gone!"

My eyes widen and I whip around to face her. "What?! You're kidding!"

-

"Scraggy!" Cilan yells, calling for the newly hatched Pokémon.

"Where are you?" I call.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu whimpers.

"Hey, Scraggy!" Iris screams.

"Axew axew!" Axew shouts. He points over to the ground.

Iris looks at him. "What's wrong?"

He motions over to the ground and yelps out. "Yew yew!"

I gasp, realizing what he means. "Over there! Scraggy's footprints!" Sure enough, I see a fresh dark trail with small footprints.

We follow the trail and come to a huge tree, where Scraggy uses Headbutt repeatedly. He seems to be angry at something.

I place my hand on my hip. "Hey, Scraggy! What are you doing over there?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yells.

Scraggy turns to us. "Scraggy?"

Suddenly, a large yellow spider-like creature comes out behind the tree and growls at Scraggy.

Iris gasps. "A Galvantula!"

I blink. "Galvantula?" I take out my Pokédex.

**Galvantula, the EleSpider Pokémon. Galvantula attacks its prey by shooting electrically-charged threads and its front mandibles can hold down opponents. **

"This is bad!" Cilan says.

"If Scraggy gets bitten by Galvantula..." Iris's voice trails off in fear.

I run forward towards Scraggy. "Scraggy! Hey, Scraggy!"

Ignoring me, he pulls his head back and tries to use Headbutt.

"Scraggy, no!" Iris and I scream.

"You can't win!" Cilan yells.

Galvantula gathers a yellow ball of electricity and throws it at Scraggy. It then shoots out a web created of lightning and shoots out small white pointer-like pins at Scraggy.

I whimper. "Scraggy, no!" The Galvantula prepares to gather another ball of lightning, but I refuse to let it hit my Scraggy! "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt, let's go!" Pikachu releases a powerful stream of lightning towards Galvantula, which breaks through the ball and hits Galvantula. It retreats back into the tree, knowing Pikachu's the powerful one now. I kneel down to Scraggy and take him in my arms. "Hey Scraggy, you okay?"

He shakes. "Scraggy..."

"Scraggy took a direct hit from Galvantula," Cilan says.

"Poor Scraggy!" Iris sympathizes.

The newborn struggles in my arms, trying to get away, but I hold onto him tightly. "Scraggy, stop it!" I turn to the emerald-eyed boy. "Cilan, is there a Pokémon Center near here?"

He takes out the small electronic map he carries around. "Let me see." He turns to me after a minute, sadness in his eyes. "I'm afraid not."

Iris smiles. "Leave it to me. I'm going to find some herbs to cure the paralysis."

I sigh with relief. "That's great."

"Axew, let's go!" With that, Iris and Axew run into the forest in search of herbs.

I look back to the small creature in my arms. "Scraggy, hang in there!"

"Pika!" Pikachu adds.

-

Back at the camp, Iris mixes up some herbs into a drinkable substance, much like the one I made for Pansage a while back. Scraggy still lays in my arms, whimpering.

"It's ready!" Iris says. She comes over to us with two bowls. "Here. This will help you." She places a spoon into one bowl and feeds Scraggy a spoonful of it.

Scraggy reluctantly swallows it. "Scraggy, down the hatch," I whisper.

Iris gives him another spoonful of the other bowl. "And this will make you feel better!" She places it in his mouth and he swallows, sticking out his tongue because of the bitterness.

I smile. "Great! Way to go!" I let him sip some water from my water bottle.

"Now Scraggy needs a good night's rest," Iris says.

I turn to her, wanting to hug her for helping Scraggy, and smile. I turn back to the creature in my arms. "Scraggy, sleep well, okay?" He snores softly and falls fast asleep.

-

In the morning, Scraggy starts to stir awake. I sigh heavily with relief. "Hey, Scraggy! Feeling better now?"

He nods eagerly. "Scraggy!"

"That's great!" I say.

"Pika!" Pikachu cheers.

"You look much better, too!" Iris adds.

Axew smiles. "Yew yew!"

"Scraggy, remember what happened yesterday?" Cilan asks.

Scraggy looks confused. "Scrag?" He suddenly glares, seeming to remember the events of last night. "...scrag..."

"Then Iris whipped you up some awesome medicine!" I say.

"Axew helped me find the herbs!" Iris tells him.

I turn to Scraggy. "So, I think you oughta thank everyone." Suddenly, he jumps up and starts to run away. "Wait! It's almost time for breakfast, Scraggy! Where are you going?! Stop!" But he keeps running until he's out of my sight.

I sigh in defeat and try to help my friends get ready for breakfast. Scraggy has to return sooner or later. I just hope with everything I have it'll be sooner.

Suddenly, Axew runs towards me, screaming. "Axew axew!"

I turn to him, raising an eyebrow. "Axew, what's wrong?"

"Axew!" he yelps.

"Pika?" Pikachu tilts his head.

"Seems like something bad happened," Cilan says.

Alarmed, I throw out my four Poké Balls, and Pidove, Oshawott, Tepig and Snivy appear. "'Kay. We've gotta help Scraggy! They nod, and we start on our search for Scraggy.

-

Soon, we find Scraggy cornered in the tree we found him near yesterday. A group of Galvantula surround him, ready to attack. However, now their attention is on me and my Pokémon, since Pikachu just used Thunderbolt on them.

"Alright, everyone!" I yell. "Protect Scraggy!"

My Pokémon do whatever they can to protect little Scraggy: Pidove flaps her wings and uses Gust, Tepig inhales and uses Ember, Oshawott growls and uses Razor Shell, Snivy glares and uses Leaf Storm, and Pikachu yips and lets out a Thunderbolt. After the attacks, the Galvantula all hide in the tree again, frightened of my Pokémon.

I run over to Scraggy. "Scraggy! Scraggy!" I kneel down to him. "Scraggy, are you okay?"

He nods. "Scrag."

I turn to my Pokémon. "And you guys, thanks!" They smile and cheer. "You know, you shouldn't be messing with that tree," I tell Scraggy.

"Maybe this was about revenge," Cilan suggests.

"After what happened?" Iris asks.

Axew appears. "Yew!"

Iris sighs. "I'm just glad you're alright."

I kneel down to Scraggy. "Hey, Scraggy, let's all eat breakfast together. What do you say?"

"Scrag?" He looks at my other Pokémon, who smile at him. "Scrag..."

-

At our little camp, our peaceful breakfast is interrupted by the sudden sound of Scraggy and Axew fighting with each other. Iris and I glare at them. "Axew, you shouldn't fight!" she yells.

"She's right!" I say. "Scraggy, you too!"

We try to pull the two Pokémon apart when Cilan's voice interrupts us. "Hey, that's it!" We look at him. "I just realized Scraggy would be the perfect training partner for Axew!"

I blink. I...never really thought about this before! "That'd be great!" I say. "What do you think?" I look at Scraggy, who nods and cheers.

"Would you like to have a battle with Scraggy, Axew?" Iris asks. He nods, and him and Scraggy glare at each other. "Awesome! They're both so psyched!"

I smirk. "Okay! Then let's battle!"

-

On the battlefield, Scraggy and Axew stare each other down. "Axew, you can do it!" Iris says.

"All the way, Scraggy!" I tell him.

"And...begin!" Cilan yells.

I smile. "Alright, Scraggy! Leer!" Scraggy glares at Axew, who shrinks. "Scraggy, now use Headbutt!" Scraggy slams his head into Axew. "Awesome! Good job!"

"Axew, use Scratch to counter!" Axew's paw glows and he slashes Scraggy with it. "That was great stuff! Scratch, and keep using it!" Axew repeatedly uses Scratch, inflicting damage on poor Scraggy.

I grit my teeth. "Don't give up, Scraggy! Use Headbutt!" He slams into Axew, head first.

"You can't give up now!" Iris says. Axew glares at Scraggy determinedly. "Yeah! Dragon Rage, let's go!"

"Headbutt one more time!" I yell.

Scraggy slams into Axew's open mouth as he prepares to shoot the blue fire at Scraggy, but an explosion occurs, like Axew chokes on the power. When the smoke clears, Axew and Scraggy lay in the dust, both unable to battle.

Iris blushes. "Hehe. It didn't work again." We go over to our Pokémon.

"So, I think I'll be calling this a draw," Cilan says, smiling.

I place my hand on my hip. "I guess so. But it sure looked like a real battle, don't ya think?"

"I wonder..." Iris's voice trails off.

I kneel down to Scraggy. "Hey Scraggy, you wanna work hard with me?" He nods eagerly.

Iris picks Axew up in her arms. "I want you to work and get stronger too, Axew." He smiles.

"Well, I'm looking forward to seeing the two of you refine your skills, along with your Pokémon friends, of course!" Cilan says, winking at me. I blush crazily.

I look back to Scraggy. "So Scraggy, why don't you get a little rest?" I reveal his Poké Ball. He nods. "Oh, yeah! 'Kay! Scraggy, let's be good friends!" I throw the Poké Ball and he jumps up, sucking himself in. The ball shuts and falls, clicking shut. I smile and take it. "Alright! I've got a Scraggy!"

"Pi pikachu!" my buddy cheers, jumping onto my shoulder. He wags his tail and licks my cheek.


End file.
